Koyuki, the Necromancing Foxkin

CHAPTER 300: Convention, Day 3, Albert Reaper

I slept really well, since there was no longer a presentation to worry about. It would still be a stressful day since I expected a lot of interest in our booth. Maybe Cassie could make a few sales though.

As soon as we opened our booth the first person arrived, the necromancer with the black knight.

"Greetings. I am Albert Reaper, it is an honour to make your acquaintance." He greeted me.

"Greetings, the honour is mine. I am Koyuki." I replied.

"Your presentation was quite fascinating. I am looking forward to the book your colleagues have announced. However, I was hoping to pick your brain about something." He said.

I also noticed something interesting. His presence got a lot of attention but we were not getting mobbed. I wondered if it was fear, or respect that kept people at bay.

"Sure, what do you want to talk about? I might have some questions myself." I replied, while glancing at his knight.

He chuckled. "Ah, you are wondering about Jim here? Why don't you say hello."

"Greetings." Jim said.

His voice was strange. It was a deep, low voice, filled with magic. It did not sound natural. It was fascinating.

I stared at the knight in wonder. "Jim, what sort of undead are you? If I may ask."

Jim chuckled. It was a low rumble.

Albert raised an eyebrow. "Fascinating. Most people are startled and instinctively afraid of Jim. That is why he does not talk too much."

"Really?" I asked. "I guess there is some magic in his voice. Does he have an air affinity?"

"What do you know about incorporeal undead?" Albert asked.

"Not much, sadly." I replied.

"Ah. I forgot that you are only a second year student. Incorporeal undead are a complicated subject. They are my own speciality." Albert said.

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"Wait, is there a ghost in there?" Skadi asked. My friends had been listening to the conversation since no one else was at our stall.

"Fascinating." Kaito said, looking at the knight.

"Not quite a ghost, he is a wraith." Albert clarified.

"Aren't wraiths quite powerful?" Helena asked.

"So are vampires, and dullahan." Albert replied, sounding amused.

"So his voice is created by magic. Wait, the same goes for skeletons. Is his voice a general skill of wraiths or is it one of Jim's powers?" I wondered. "Oh, and is he fused to the armour? Is he possessing it? Can wraiths do that?"

"I understand that you have a lot of questions. I might answer a few if you are willing to share your own knowledge. You see, wraiths don't have bodies. Your discoveries on how to change the spell of an undead might help me tremendously. Wraiths can't be enhanced by preparing, or strengthening a corpse. If I could find a way to modify the spell though…"

I nodded. I could see how our discovery might help. Sadly I did not know anything about incorporeal undead though.

"I really don't know enough about wraiths but I guess you could modify some spells to help him, maybe. What is your goal? His body is sort of an armour. But is it part of him? I am not sure if my method would work to enhance that." It was a fascinating problem. "How do you make a wraith, by the way?"

"Create one? I have no idea. If you figure that out, please let me know. I met Jim in an old ruin, we came to an understanding and he is now working as my guard. You can create lower tier incorporeal undead but a tier three eludes me. Incorporeal undead are fascinating. In some ways they are quite strong but they have their weaknesses. More powerful ones can interact with the world, in a limited way. Mostly they attack with magic and can only be harmed with magic. However, their defences are quite poor. Their danger often comes from surprise attacks. And more powerful ones can be full mages." Albert explained.

"A full mage would be quite scary if they can just appear out of nowhere." Cassie mused.

"I believe a wraith can also drain the living." Kaito added.

"Like a vampire?" Hatsumi asked.

"They drain with a touch, and they do not drain blood." Albert clarified. "They inject necrotic mana and syphon the mana from the living. It is a form of devouring. You seem to know quite a lot."

Kaito smiled. "I believe I have not properly introduced myself, apologies. I am Kaito, a humble servant of Koyuki."

"Greetings, I am Hatsumi, maid, vampire and a spellblade."

"Jim, wraith."

"Pleasure to make your acquaintance." Albert gave them a respectful nod.

I pondered how much I wanted to share with him. He seemed like a reasonable person so far and he had not disrespected my undead.

"I can tell you this much, to target the spell that animates your undead you have to use your link. Through it you can reach the spell and possibly modify it." I said.

"The link? Of course, it makes so much sense! Thank you." He bowed. "As a reward I will let you in on a little secret. Jim is not really bound to that armour. He is simply driving it. I had it commissioned especially for him."

Now it was my turn to be surprised. "That works? Can he switch armours? Can he drive other things?"

"Perhaps. Once you complete your studies I can recommend you to visit some haunted places. I can tell you the incorporeal are fascinating and well worth studying." He replied, sounding amused.

A crunching sound interrupted our conversation. I turned around and saw Nyx chewing an undead rat.

"More spies." I observed.

"Quite bold but not that surprising." Albert replied. "Anyway, it was nice talking to you. I shall no longer block your stall. I hope we shall meet again."

"Thank you for stopping by." I replied.

I had enjoyed that conversation. Necromancy was fascinating and had so much more for me to discover! Encounters like this were what I had hoped for at this conference. Sadly, with Albert leaving it looked like I was simply going to be bombarded with questions again. I sighed and put on a smile for the next person approaching our stall.