Chapter 48

(Note) This is my second post of the day.

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It was a body that should have been lifeless, incapable of movement. I had confirmed it.

There was no breathing, no heartbeat, and most of the blood had drained out. Most importantly, the heart, pierced by a sword, had long since burst. To anyone, it was nothing but a brutally murdered corpse, and thus, Knight Shiran would never rise again.

...That was what it should have been. But the fact was, Shiran was standing up.

That was not all. A horrifying transformation was taking place in Shiran’s body, which let out a soul-shattering scream.

The deep wounds were closing as if filled with putty, the purple flesh swelling up.

The organs that had been hanging from her side were being dragged back into her body with a squelching sound.

Dark, discolored blood spurted from the severed left arm and latched onto the arm on the ground like a snake. As if watching a film in reverse, the blood reconnected to the main body, pulling the left arm back into its original position.

The purple flesh swelled, and the left arm was reconnected.

Suddenly, the color of the ring on Shiran’s left hand changed from blue to yellow.

It was a signal.

Proof that the elf girl, who was supposed to protect the human world, had transformed into a monster—a mindless undead, a ghoul.

Yes, the conditions were in place.

The conditions for the creation of a ghoul are related to the concentration of magic in the space. Fort Chilia, built in the forest of trees overflowing with magic, had become a place of death where over a thousand humans and hundreds of monsters had perished. It would be hard to find better conditions for the creation of a ghoul.

Even with my still clumsy perception, I could feel the magic floating in the fortress being absorbed into the body of the girl in front of me at an incredible speed.

“Y-You... How dare you...”

Sōji, his face contorted with pain, stood up.

At the same time, the sword that had been embedded in the center of Shiran’s chest was pushed out by the flesh swelling from the inside.

Shiran, picking up the fallen sword, fiercely attacked Sōji, who was staggering from the pain.

“Gaaaah, aaaaaah!”

With a roar, she delivered a powerful, diagonal slash. Sōji blocked it with his straight sword.

“Ugh!?”

The heavy blow caused Sōji’s feet to sink into the floor.

“Gaaaah!”

Reversing the strike, Shiran slammed her sword down in a reverse diagonal. The blade groaned, and Sōji’s body was violently shaken.

From there, a torrential offensive began.

Shiran’s sword, unlike the delicate techniques she had used in life, was now a brutal, indiscriminate weapon.

But the momentum was something she had never possessed in life.

That was only natural. She was already a monster. Her existence was on a different level from that of a human. Moreover, while the refined sword techniques she had cultivated were lost, some of what had been ingrained in her body during her life seemed to remain. The sword strokes were so fierce and sharp that it was hard to believe they were wielded by a mindless undead.

Steel groaned, the wind howled, the living groaned, and the dead screamed.

Of course, Sōji was not going to take it lying down.

His counterattack grazed Shiran’s cheek, cut through her shoulder, and tore her thigh.

“Gaaaah!”

But Shiran paid no attention to such injuries.

It was as if the life that had already ended had no interest in being hurt.

What was there was undoubtedly a ghoul.

“This... I can’t intervene, surely.”

Garbella, who had been fighting Sōji until just a moment ago, spoke to me, who had been watching the battle in a daze. Lili, who had repaired her face, was with her.

“I apologize. My mistake has put you in danger.”

“No, that’s fine. More importantly, can’t you go to Shiran’s aid?”

“That’s a bit difficult. Of course, I don’t want to miss such a good opportunity...”

Watching the two of them fight, Garbella frowned.

“That thing doesn’t distinguish between friend and foe. If we fight alongside it, we’ll end up having our limbs bitten off.”

“...”

It was a valid point that I couldn’t argue with.

“Gaaaah, aaaaah!”

The current Shiran had no reason.

Once within the range of her sword, she would tear apart anyone, friend or foe, and devour them. There was no way they could fight together.

“Kōhō-sama!”

“Captain.”

Seeing this as the moment, the captain approached with a group of knights.

She glanced at Garbella for a moment, showing a sign of caution, but then seemed to realize that now was not the time to worry about it. She turned her gaze away and spoke to me.

“Let’s retreat while we can.”

“But Shiran...”

“That’s not Shiran. You mustn’t misunderstand. That’s just an undead monster.”

Having fought in the forest for many years, the captain’s opinion was dry.

She must have experienced such things in the past.

That’s right. The one there is not Shiran.

It’s a monster that has taken up residence in Shiran’s corpse.

Shiran is dead. Once dead, that’s the end. There’s nothing that can be done for a dead girl, even if she stands and walks. That’s the common sense of this world, where undead monsters exist.

“What will you do, my lord? If we act now, we can escape, as the woman says.”

Garbella asked.

“Or do you want to avenge her? If so, we can wait until that ghoul exhausts that man as much as possible. He’s injured, and continuous battles will accumulate fatigue. Then, I might be able to defeat him.”

As Garbella said, Sōji was accumulating more injuries.

It was probably a regrettable mistake that he had blocked the first bite with his dominant hand. Moreover, the situation of a supposedly dead person rising and attacking is a source of primal fear for humans. It was clear that Sōji’s sword strokes were becoming dull.

Furthermore, as an undead monster, Shiran ignored any attacks that were not fatal to her existence and continued to swing her sword. As a result, there were several instances of mutual destruction, and even with his cheat abilities, Sōji was not left unscathed.

Shiran was also injured, but the ‘damaged areas’ from which no blood flowed were quickly repaired by the swelling purple flesh. The injuries she had sustained in life remained, but other areas gradually returned to their original smoothness.

The characteristic of her being able to regenerate and repair, as an undead monster, was, of course, sustained by magic. She could continue to fight for a while until the fuel ran out. She would buy us enough time to escape and weaken Sōji for a counterattack.

“What will you do?”

Garbella asked.

Should we leave Shiran and escape, or avenge her? Or...

“...”

For a moment, I closed my eyes.

Behind my eyelids, the girl’s smile. In my ears, the screams of the undead. —I made up my mind and lifted my eyelids.

The resolve was set. All that was left was to move forward without hesitation. ...Even if, as a result, anything and everything were to change.

“Captain, may I ask you a question?”

“Huh? A question...?”

The captain looked puzzled at my words.

“Shiran seems different from a regular ghoul. Do you have any idea why?”

I asked without hesitation.

“I’ve encountered a ghoul before. At that time, there was no such repair of injured bodies. The knights who became ghouls didn’t even use swords. But Shiran is different.”

“So what...”

“Just answer me. It’s important.”

When I spoke in a tone that brooked no refusal, the captain, though hesitant, answered.

“...It’s rare, but it’s known that some ghouls undergo such transformations.”

“Rare, you say. Is it possible that this is more common among famous knights, warriors, or mages? For example... like the Undead King Karl.”

That was a legendary figure I had heard about from Kai.

A king of a magic nation, skilled in sorcery, transformed into a lich, an undead monster, after the death of his lover. He retained his intelligence through his strong will.

“That’s a fairy tale.”

“Yes, I know. In this world, it’s considered a fairy tale.”

Undead monsters do not retain their consciousness from life. Because they have become monsters, and it is impossible for such monsters to have human-like will. That’s the common sense. Therefore, the legend of the Undead King Karl is just a fairy tale. That’s what people think.

But I know. I know that willful monsters can exist. If so, there is a possibility that undead monsters can retain their will. If the legend of the Undead King Karl was based on something that really happened in the past...

“So, what about it? Is there any pattern among the humans who become the ‘rare special undead monsters’ you mentioned?”

“...There are few examples, so it’s questionable whether there’s a pattern.”

After saying that, the captain looked up as if recalling something.

“It’s true that there are a few known cases where excellent knights have died and become ghouls. However, such incidents in the knight corps are considered scandals and are not recorded officially.”

“I see. Thank you.”

I nodded and looked at the ongoing battle between Shiran and Sōji.

“...Perhaps, my lord.”

Lili, who seemed to have understood, spoke to me.

“Is it possible?”

“Yes.”

I nodded in response.

This was my power. I instinctively knew what I could and could not do.

Looking at the captain and the others, who seemed not to understand, I said simply.

“There’s a possibility to bring Shiran back.”

“Wh-What!?”

“Really!?”

The captain was speechless, and Kai reacted strongly.

“Really, Kōhō? Can you bring her sister back to life!?”

“...Unfortunately, I can’t bring her back to life. But I might be able to restore her heart to the undead monster she is.”

As I caught Kai, who had thrown herself at me, she blinked in confusion.

“What do you mean?”

“Come to think of it, I haven’t explained the details of my ability yet. You see, Kai, my ability isn’t just about controlling monsters. I can connect with their hearts and give them will.”

Shiran is a monster now.

If so, it falls within the scope of my ability. I should be able to connect with her heart.

“Of course, there are limitations.”

My ability cannot create something from nothing.

If there is no potential for a heart to sprout, I cannot give a monster a heart.

The important thing is whether a fragment of Shiran’s will remains within her as an undead monster. But I had no such worries. I was confident.

“Thanks to Shiran awakening as an undead monster, neither I nor Kai died. That was not a coincidence.”

She awakened as an undead at the very moment Kai and I were in danger. Such a convenient coincidence could not exist in this unreasonable world.

“It was Shiran’s wish to protect someone that moved her corpse. Even if she lost her reason, her heart has not been lost.”

According to the legend of the Undead King Karl, he was an excellent mage with a strong will.

If this is a condition for a ‘willful undead,’ then Shiran, an excellent spirit user who fought with a strong wish, meets these conditions.

What is fighting there is not an anonymous undead monster. It is Shiran. She fought bravely, prepared to die, and continues to fight even in death.

Just to protect someone.

Moreover, I had another reason to be confident that her heart remained.

The moment I imagined being cut by Sōji, having lost the emergency evasion method of burning Asarina, I heard a voice.

—No matter what, I have to protect them.

The voice I heard at that moment was undoubtedly Shiran’s.

Perhaps the shared sense of threat against Sōji synchronized our thoughts, and for a brief moment, a connection was established between us. Undead monsters may work differently from usual, and the connection is now broken, but if I reconnect it, the voice should reach her. Her heart has not been lost.

“But to do that, I need to touch her.”

The essence of my cheat ability, the connection, becomes stronger the closer I am to the target. If I can touch her skin directly, I should be able to connect with her heart.

However, that also means interfering in the battle between Shiran and Sōji.

“In other words, it’s our turn to act.”

Lili twirled her spear and nodded at Garbella.

“Alright. I’ll hold that man down during that time. I won’t make the same mistake as before.”

Garbella, curling the corners of her lips, clicked her spider legs.

Perhaps eager for a rematch, a belligerent smile adorned her beautiful face.

Smiling at her reliable response, I gently pulled Kai, who was clinging to me, away.

“Kōhō...”

There was a slight resistance. Kai’s hand was gripping the hem of my shirt.

“Yeah?”

“Please take care of my sister.”

Smiling, I patted Kai’s head.

“Leave it to me.”

The book version of "The Monster Lord" is now available.

It includes a special side story from Lili’s perspective, so I hope you enjoy it.

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