novelraw Chapter 492: Episode 492
Chapter 492: Episode 492
The twin professors’ demeanor shifted. Lin, standing on the left, raised her index finger.
"Now, repeat after me. Slowly. As slowly as you can. ’Finde-die Die-be!"
Simon stammered, slowly mimicking her words.
"Fin-ded-ie D-ie-be!"
"See? The rhythm breaks, doesn’t it?" Lune on the right pointed out sharply.
"Now try this one. ’Ra-v-ri-ma-đưa ra. anh!" said Lin.
"Rav-rima-đưara. anh!"
Once again, Simon missed the beat and fumbled. To fail even with two Kizen professors giving him a private lesson was mortifying. His face burned with shame.
’Am I really just rhythm-deaf?’
"Then shall we try something easier, Lin?" suggested Lune.
"I think that’s a good idea, Lune!" agreed Lin.
The two girls wagged their fingers and spoke in unison. "The-school-bell-rings. Ding. Dong. Ding. Let’s-all-ga-ther."
"???"
Simon stared at them, completely baffled. The difficulty level had just plummeted.
"Well? What are you waiting for? Repeat after us!"
"Ah, yes."
Feeling slightly ridiculous, Simon obediently did as he was told. The twins nodded in unison.
"See! You’re doing great, Simon!" said Lin.
"So what do you think the problem is?" asked Lune.
Simon scratched the back of his neck. "Well, that wasn’t a Dirge. It was just a simple song."
"Why can you sing a normal song perfectly fine, but your rhythm is off only for the Dirge?" pressed Lin.
"Have you ever stopped to think why your rhythm is off ’specifically’ for the Dirge?" pressed Lune.
’Come to think of it...’
The two girls spun around, switching places as they laughed.
"You already know the answer," said Lin.
"You know what is correct," said Lune.
"The truth is, ’Finde-die Die-be’ is supposed to be sung your way, as ’Fin-ded-ie D-ie-be’," explained Lin.
"That’s the original version," confirmed Lune.
Simon’s head was spinning. What on earth were they trying to tell him?
"The Dirge we taught the class is a human song," said Lin.
"It’s a system where a human voice activates a human-made magic circle, so the melody has to be tailored to the circle’s formulas," said Lune.
"But the way you sing it, Simon, is the raw, unadulterated way," said Lin.
"You’re not rhythm-deaf; you know the true version, so you’re simply not accustomed to the artificial one," said Lune.
"So we’ll teach you something new," said Lin.
The two cleared their throats, erected a soundproof barrier, and began to sing a new song in perfect unison.
[Der König von Undead fiel hier nieder—!!]
Simon’s body trembled.
Goosebumps erupted all over his body.
"Repeat after us."
Simon replicated their song perfectly. It was short, only a few sentences, but this one he could manage without any trouble.
"You understand. Keep singing," urged Lin.
"Close your eyes and summon the Jet-Black," instructed Lune.
Simon closed his eyes and began to sing again.
"Ich schwöre bei der Dunkelheit."
His emotions soared. As if making up for his earlier humiliation, the song flowed from him as if it were a lie.
"Good, you’re doing well!" praised Lin.
"Just like when you command the undead—" said Lune.
"Stronger!"
"With more will!"
As Simon scowled, belting out the song, he felt a stuffy, churning sensation build deep in his chest.
"Make it resonate more!" cried Lin.
"Higher!" cried Lune.
Simon took a massive breath, and then, with the feeling of finally expelling all the pressure from his core, he roared.
[Der König von Undead fiel hier nieder—!!]
Without realizing it, Simon had unleashed his ‘Absolute Command,’ not with his thoughts, but with his own voice.
’Rumble. Rrrrumble.’
The moment he sang, the stone lids of the tangled graves all around them began to grind open. Skeletons and zombies started to rise.
’Thwump! Thud!’
Zombie arms burst from the soil as skeletons swarmed forward, the light in their eye sockets flaring to life.
[Der König ist Zurück—!!]
One. Two. Dozens—no, hundreds of undead from the cemetery.
They gathered before Simon.
"Just as we thought," said Lin.
"So it was true," said Lune.
The twin professors clasped their hands. Every single undead in that place had risen only to kneel before Simon in reverence.
"Ah."
Simon finally opened his eyes and shuddered at the scene that had unfolded around him.
[Mwahahaha! Well, I’ll be damned.]
Pier’s clone cackled in his ear.
"What Nephthys said was right," said Lin.
"Right, right," said Lune.
The professors’ eyes glinted as they approached. Then, in perfect unison, they asked, "You’re the ‘Seventh,’ aren’t you?"
Simon flinched.
"We heard from Nephthys. Baby Lord Commander," said Lin.
"We’ve been watching you, Baby Lord Commander," said Lune.
The light in the twins’ eyes flashed.
"Nephthys wants you to ascend to the next level," said Lin.
"Because you are the most important ‘key’ to her plan," said Lune.
Hundreds of undead let out a collective, mournful cry. The twin professors raised their hands.
"Congratulations on successfully—" began Lin.
"—passing our test," finished Lune.
All the dead who had risen from the cemetery opened their jaws and wailed, a sound that would be forever seared into Simon’s memory.
---
The next morning.
"The undead are beings that exist on the border between life and death, and necromancers are those who imbue the dead with a special kind of life."
It was the second-year Intermediate Summoning class.
"Of course, the priests of the Holy Federation see it as little more than a strange puppetry that moves corpses, but our art is qualitatively different for one key reason: necromancers utilize the skills the undead possessed in life."
Professor Aaron paced the platform, textbook in hand.
"The ‘Lune of Lingering Will’—the power to control residual thoughts and more strongly draw out an undead’s living skills—and its foundational formulas are essential knowledge for any summoner. It is not used solely for Skeleton Knights. I will now explain its various structures and variations. Open your textbooks to page sixteen."
The students flipped through their books and began copying what Aaron wrote on the blackboard.
Lost in a daze, Simon was snapped back to reality by the sound of fingers snapping. In the next seat, Lorraine was looking at him with concern.
"What’s wrong, Simon? Is something the matter?"
"Ah, no. It’s nothing," he said, quickly shaking himself alert.
"This isn’t like you, though," Toto commented from his other side. "This is the first time I’ve ever seen you space out during Professor Aaron’s class."
Lorraine’s brow furrowed. "...Are you still upset about not being able to sing the Dirge yesterday?"
From the seat behind them came a stifled laugh. It was Serne.
"I suppose the shock of discovering he’s rhythm-deaf for the first time was too much for him."
"I-It’s not like that!" Simon protested, his face turning red.
"You four, quiet," Aaron called out, his voice sharp.
They immediately fell silent and turned their attention back to their textbooks.
’I just can’t stop thinking about what happened yesterday.’
’Smack! Smack!’
Simon slapped his cheeks to focus. Just as he was about to resume taking notes...
’Kiriri!’
A sudden noise made him jump.
A Corpse Spider, having slipped in unnoticed, was tapping at the windowpane. Startled, Simon glanced around cautiously. Thankfully, neither Aaron nor the TAs were looking his way.
With a motion he hoped looked natural, Simon slid the window open. The Corpse Spider scuttled through the gap, dropped a small, folded note onto his desk, and vanished.
’A letter from Erze! Did she find something?’
Erzebet was currently at the Dresden Royal Library, investigating the mysterious group that had experimented on ‘Kal’.
Simon carefully unfolded the note.
’To my beloved Lord Commander,’
It was definitely from her. Tensing, Simon began to read.
’Even now, as I write this from the library, your humble servant can think of nothing but you, my Lord Commander. Whenever I recall the one-day date voucher you so graciously offered as a reward, my heart flutters so...’
’She wasted half the report on this nonsense.’
Simon’s eyes scanned down to the next paragraph.
’With this, I trust I have conveyed but one ten-millionth of my affection for you, and I shall now deliver my interim report. In short, I have not yet deciphered this language. The more I investigate, the more I believe these characters are not a language at all, but a highly advanced cryptographic formula.’
A highly advanced cryptographic formula.
’Hoping to discover a pattern, I was rummaging through some documents when I found a doodle made by someone who had either written or read them. This doodle, of course, was written in the common continental tongue.’
Simon’s eyes widened.
He leaned in closer, his eyes fixed on the next words.
’Tarados. Large-scale cleaning required.’
A strange light glinted in Simon’s eyes. ’Tarados?’ Was that a person’s name? A place? And what did ‘large-scale cleaning’ mean? Considering the atrocities this group had committed, the phrase sent a chill down his spine.
’Pier, Pier.’
Simon gently tapped the Pier clone pinned to his uniform like a badge. A moment later, its eyes lit up.
[Mwahaha! Why have you called, boy!]
’Take a look at this. It’s Erzebet’s interim report.’
After reading the note, Pier spoke.
[Tarados is a place name! It’s located at the very edge of the Dresden Kingdom.]
’Hmm.’
[Who knows what those bastards are plotting there!]
Simon nodded. According to Erzebet, the ink from the scribble was still fresh, meaning it hadn’t been written long ago. This was a crucial clue, one he couldn’t afford to let slip away.
’What should I do?’
Just as Simon was crossing his arms, lost in thought...
"That’s all for today’s class," Aaron announced.
As if on cue, the students erupted into chatter.
"Quiet! I have one more announcement."
Aaron touched the chalk to the blackboard and drew a sharp line.
"The dispatch evaluations will begin this weekend."
The students’ faces brightened. Among Kizen’s notoriously brutal curriculum, the dispatch evaluations were seen as a welcome reprieve. One could choose a simple mission on Roc Island and use the time to rest, or pick an assignment further afield and enjoy something akin to a holiday. Simon had always made good use of them, whether to search for his father’s Ancient Undead, secure funds, or acquire new assets for his legion. It was a precious opportunity to leave the school grounds, and he always looked forward to it.
"I understand your enthusiasm. However."
Aaron’s lips curled into a thin, knowing smile.
"The rules for the Mission Evaluation change slightly for second-years," Aaron announced.
The request forms Simon had encountered during his first year were categorized as follows. White Request Form was a mission within Roc Island, with no possibility of encountering priests. Blue Request Form was a mission within the Dark Alliance, with an extremely low possibility of encountering priests. Red Request Form was a mission within the Neutral Zone, with a high possibility of encountering priests. Black Request Form was a mission within the Holy Federation, where an encounter with priests was guaranteed.
The most significant change for the second-year evaluation was this.
"The white request forms are gone," Aaron continued. "Second-years will no longer take missions on Roc Island."
A murmur immediately spread through the students.
"The lowest-rated missions will now start with blue requests. If you want a high score, you’ll have to take on a red or black mission. And sometime during your second year, every one of you must..." Aaron raised his index finger. "Choose and complete a single black request."
Jaws dropped across the room. A black request meant infiltrating the Holy Federation, a land teeming with priests—the kind of mission reserved for true professionals.
"...This is insane."
"I never thought I’d set foot in the Holy Federation until after graduation."
The students were thrown into disarray.
"Wh-what do we do, Simon?" Toto looked over, trembling. "They say the Holy Federation is a living hell! That rivers of blood flow instead of water, with human corpses floating in them! And that monsters starved for divinity roam the lands!"
Simon offered a bitter smile. "Well, I doubt it’s quite that bad."
"But they’re sending us to such a terrifying place! We’ll be caught by an inquisitor and killed before we even cross the border! They’ll hang us on a red cross!"
’Thump! Thump!’
Aaron rapped his knuckles on the lectern.
"Quiet."
The classroom fell silent once more.
"You still have plenty of time, so think it over carefully. We, the faculty, recommend you undertake a black request mission during the second semester, after you’ve had more time to build your skills." Aaron clasped his hands behind his back and shuffled forward in his slippers. "Tomorrow night, request boards will be installed in the lobby of each department’s dormitory. Many new missions suited to your majors have been added, so be sure to check them. This is your chance to gain real-world experience that you can’t get within these walls. That is all."
"Thank you for your hard work!"
One by one, the students rose and filed out of the lecture hall. Simon’s eyes gleamed as he organized his textbooks.
’Pier. You know what I’m about to say, right?’
[Mwahaha! It has been some time since I’ve had a chance to stretch my limbs!] The eyes of Pier’s clone flashed. [I will have the full might of the legion ready to deploy at a moment’s notice!]
Simon nodded and rose from his seat. The time had come to once again act as the legion commander, Pion.