Chapter 18: A Perfect Grave-Robbing Duo
The undead stood before Abyss with the same reverence as devout believers before their god, trembling with fear and not daring to show any disrespect. After Abyss promised to return Princess Leona’s body if they failed and guaranteed the villagers’ safety, the spirit, without a word of complaint, led Abyss and Flora towards the distant mountains.
The Princess’s tomb had only one entrance, located in a natural cave. A rough, natural stone served as the door, blending seamlessly with the cave wall. Even the most experienced explorer would have difficulty discerning that this was the entrance to a Princess’s tomb.
“This is the entrance to Princess Leona’s tomb. We guards are not allowed to enter. Please forgive me for only being able to bring you here,” the spirit said in a raspy voice.
“We’ll take it from here,” Abyss nodded with satisfaction. “You can go back and rest now.”
“I humbly beg the Necromancer Lord to protect our village and spare our descendants from suffering,” the spirit lingered.
“I, Flora Cicathia Saint Floracess Ping, swear in the name of the Nine Gods that I will protect the villagers from harm,” Flora said solemnly to the spirit.
In this world, oaths sworn to the gods using one’s full, true name held a powerful binding force. Those who broke their oaths would surely suffer misfortune. Flora couldn’t possibly be unaware of this.
The spirit trembled slightly. He knew that Flora had been a Saint and understood the significance of the Nine Gods’ names to such a young woman. Finally at ease, he nodded to Flora and gradually faded into the air.
“Alright, we can go in now,” Abyss said, tilting his head towards the stone door. “I won’t let you break your oath.”
Flora instinctively took Abyss’s hand. In the few days they had spent together, she had become accustomed to the process of entering and exiting the Shadow Realm with him.
After a snap of his fingers, Abyss looked at the stone door for a moment and then extended a hand towards it.
Sharp bony armor quickly covered his hand, and a faint buzzing sound resonated in the cave. As the buzzing intensified, Abyss’s hand trembled. Then, the bony armor shot out like arrows, striking the stone door. The door was hard and heavy, but it crumbled like sugar before Abyss’s bone projectiles. A palm-sized hole appeared with a cracking sound, followed by a web of cracks.
Abyss then kicked the door.
It creaked and some stone fragments fell, but the door remained unmoved.
“…You do it,” Abyss said, covering his face and hiding behind Flora, his pride wounded.
…
Beyond the entrance, a plain and unremarkable path descended underground. The surrounding rock walls were roughly hewn, with chisel marks still visible. There was no light source. Rather than a Princess’s tomb, it resembled an unsafe abandoned mine.
“It might collapse soon,” Abyss said, looking at the walls. “There are quite a few cracks.”
“If it collapses, the Princess and the secrets she holds will be buried underground forever, won’t they?” Flora said sadly. “To die from a curse and then be buried so hastily is too unfair to Princess Leona.”
“Not only will she be buried forever, but her body will also be crushed,” Abyss said, extending his index finger. “Even with magic and alchemical preservatives, I don’t fancy digging up a vintage meat pie from the ground.”
Flora gave Abyss a disgusted look as he spoke so seriously.
“But you’d be wrong to say that the Empress didn’t care about this tomb,” Abyss said with a smile, pointing at Flora’s feet. “Look what you’re stepping on.”
Flora immediately looked down, but she saw nothing but the roughly carved steps.
“Wait, look again,” Abyss said, gently blowing on the ground.
A dense network of magic runes appeared before Flora’s eyes. Countless runes formed lines, like a spiderweb, covering not only the floor but also the path ahead.
“If we weren’t in the Shadow Realm, we would have triggered the alarm mechanism of these magic circles when we entered,” Abyss said, walking forward unconcernedly. “But it doesn’t matter now. We can even dance in this tomb without affecting the real world—I actually know a dance to perform in front of graves. Do you want to learn?”
“I think I’ll pass…” Flora declined immediately.
“You’ll dance with me sooner or later,” Abyss chuckled softly. He was in a good mood.
With their dark vision, they didn’t need any torches or other light sources. They followed the path, which grew steeper and steeper. After descending about forty or fifty meters, the scenery suddenly opened up, and they entered a relatively spacious area. It was a large hall, about three or four hundred square meters, but it was completely empty, not even a brazier in sight. Only a single luxurious coffin, adorned with gold and jewels, lay in the center of the hall, exuding an eerie aura.
A dense network of magic runes, so intricate it made one’s scalp tingle, covered the entire hall, constantly rotating. Even a mouse entering wouldn’t escape detection.
“The magic runes here are even denser,” Flora exclaimed. “The materials needed to build a magic circle of this scale must be astronomically expensive.”
“This place is as heavily guarded as a ghoul’s teeth. It seems the Empress’s confidants replenish the materials for this magic circle every six months to ensure it keeps running,” Abyss said, grimacing. “Even royalty wouldn’t waste money on something like this that no one can see. The Empress must have her reasons. This is getting more and more interesting.”
“How are you going to retrieve the Princess’s body now? There must be magic circles inside the coffin too, right?” Flora looked at Abyss, at a loss for ideas. She could think of a thousand ways to retrieve the body using her Divine Arts, but none that wouldn’t trigger the magic circles.
“There’s still a way. This magic circle can only detect physical objects, not souls,” Abyss nodded, rubbing one of his rings and releasing a mage’s phantom from it.
“My lord, what can I do for you?” the mage phantom bowed respectfully to Abyss.
“Trivik, do you see the magic circle around us? Can you figure out the corresponding spell?” Abyss asked, pointing at the rotating runes.
The mage phantom named Trivik looked around and said after a moment of thought, “It’s an amplified seventh-tier spell, Arcane Web, and there’s another one inside the coffin. It’s also connected to a signaling circle.”
“That’s right, Arcane Web. I need you to stay here for a month and chant the Arcane Web spell in reverse, using your magic to temporarily disable it,” Abyss said. “That shouldn’t be difficult for you, and you’re undead now, so you won’t get tired.”
“Well… no problem… but…”
“Meet your two card buddies,” Abyss released two more phantoms. As soon as they saw Trivik, they exclaimed happily.
“Ah, someone to play cards with! Master, leave this to me!” Trivik said, beaming with joy, and patted his chest in assurance.
Seeing Flora’s confusion, Abyss explained as he sent Trivik and the other two souls back to the real world, “He was an elven mage who spent his life immersed in magic. Although his own power was average, he was incredibly knowledgeable. Even I often consult him about magic outside of necromancy. By having him chant the spell in reverse, he can interfere with the detection circle and temporarily disable it without triggering the signaling mechanism. And Trivik is a card fanatic. He’s always happy when he has someone to play cards with.”
Back in the real world, Trivik immediately started playing cards with his two friends, his mouth not idle as he chanted a strange, distorted version of the spell in reverse. The glowing runes around him actually flickered and went out.
“That should do it. I’m going to retrieve Princess Leona’s body. Stay here, don’t move,” Abyss said, taking Flora’s hand and pulling her out of the Shadow Realm.
Flora obediently stayed where she was, watching as Abyss strolled over to the coffin, lifted the lid with practiced ease, and reached inside.
“So that’s how he resurrects the dead. He does it directly in the coffin…”
“Ah, success,” Abyss said with a satisfied smile, extending a hand into the coffin. “Come on, grab my hand and come out… Ugh!”
Before he could finish speaking, a small hand shot out from the coffin, grabbed his throat, and yanked him inside!
Flora covered her forehead. Although she acknowledged that Abyss was incredibly strong, why was she not at all surprised that he had somehow messed this up?
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