Chapter 57: The Eclipse King is crowned, and a saint receives a Divine Message
A week after Vandalieu was acknowledged as the king of Talosheim, a grand coronation ceremony was held.
"Isn't it fine for me to just declare that I'll become the king?" asked Vandalieu. "I'll even prepare a proper party afterwards."
"Holy Son, though this kind of ceremony may seem meaningless at first glance, you must change your way of thinking and realize that there is meaning in consciously acknowledging the fact that you are the king," said Nuaza.
With that, it was decided that a proper ceremony would be held and various preparations were made.
First was the crown and throne, which Vandalieu made hastily out of Orichalcum, saying, "Let's make do these for now." They were the color of black metal fragments of the Dragon Golem that were used as materials for them, but apparently this amount of Orichalcum would be worth enough to buy a castle or two.
Tarea had desperately wanted to build them, but Vandalieu had her prioritize the manufacturing of arms. These royal Orichalcum products would probably be used as materials for shields and armor soon anyway, so he had decided that he would have her build more after the war.
After that, the day of the coronation ceremony was announced to everyone and preparations for a feast were made. Vandalieu had the feeling that this took up most of the week.
"For the king himself to be cooking… should I call myself the Cooking*?" Vandalieu wondered.
"Bocchan, what would you do if that actually appeared on your Status?" Saria asked him.
Vandalieu's pun was not well-received.
After that, everyone dressed up (albeit in clothes made of clean furs, making them look like a tribe of savages) and stood in rows in the assembly hall built in front of the royal castle.
"Hey, hey! Why do I have to be a military officer standing at the front?!" Borkus complained. "I'm a free adventurer!"
"Boy, I am still training myself, so I do not think I am fit to take the position of the royal court mage…" Zadiris mumbled.
"Bocchan! I am but a coachman and caretaker of horses! Being appointed to a civil official position is too much for the likes of me!" Sam exclaimed.
"… I've hardened my resolve, so why has nobody else hardened theirs?" asked Vandalieu. "You all don't know when to give up. Especially you, Sam. Why do you think I made an assembly hall that a carriage can pass through?"
There was apparently a meaning to the ceremony, so Vandalieu had mercilessly filled the vacant positions of military officer, civil official and royal court mage. Well, they were more like the noble's seats in the plaza, however.
"Now then, the coronation ceremony will now begin," Nuaza announced.
He was the one conducting the ceremony. It was customary for the leader of the Church of Vida to conduct it, but as the only current member of the Church was him, a former warrior-priest, it was necessary for him to act as a substitute for the Church's leader.
Nuaza had also shown considerable disapproval at acting as the Church's leader, but when Vandalieu had asked him to nominate another suitable candidate, he had accepted his fate once he realized that there was nobody else to nominate.
"For being able to see this day, we offer our gratitude to the goddess Vida and our ancestor Talos," he said, beginning the ceremony. "I am certain that his majesty the late king, her majesty the First Princess Levia and her majesty the Second Princess Zandia would also be overjoyed."
And then Nuaza would give a small recount of Talosheim's history. Vandalieu would make a promise to continue that history and bring further prosperity to Talosheim, receive the crown and be bestowed the Title of Sun King. And then the coronation ceremony would be over.
The festivities would follow that, but -
���However, from today, we are stepping into a new page of history," Nuaza continued. "Holy Son, please accept the Title of the first Eclipse King and make an oath to bear and uphold Talosheim's royal authority."
The Title bestowed upon Vandalieu was not that of Sun King. Considering Talosheim's current state, this Title would not be suitable.
Talosheim was currently livelier at night than during the day. Its inhabitants were the Ghouls who could see things sufficiently with moonlight alone as well as the Undead and new monster races that could see in the dark just as well as on a sunny afternoon.
The only exceptions were the Cemetery Bees and Immortal Ents.
That was why Vandalieu's Title was Eclipse King. The reason it wasn't 'King of the Dark Night' was because it was bad for his image and because he wanted to have the Titans who had evacuated Talosheim in the past and their descendants to return one day. Once Vandalieu had become an honorary nobleman and secured his position in society, he wanted to conduct various things like commercial trading.
That was why he had decided on Eclipse King, associated with a solar eclipse, something that was neither light nor darkness.
"I am one with Talosheim," Vandalieu declared.
Well, in reality, I'll be leaving it and coming back, he thought as he spoke the line that had been announced beforehand and received the Orichalcum crown.
"Vandalieu, the Eclipse King, has been enthroned on this day," said Nuaza. The moment he finished speaking, a deafening cheer echoed from people.
"UOOOOOH! UOOOOOH!"
"KING! KING! KING!"
Fists and weapons were thrust into the air above the plaza as the Undead and Ghouls shouted in joy and praise for Vandalieu.
Bone Chimeras, Pteranodon Zombies and Cemetery Bees flew through the air in place of the doves that might be seen in ceremonies on Earth.
Everyone had already been told that this coronation ceremony was being conducted for the purpose of defeating the Mirg shield-nation's expedition army. The army of the Mirg shield-nation, which had destroyed Talosheim once already, was coming back. Knowing that, their desire for battle was seething within them.
Even after becoming Undead, the Titans held the view that the sins of the father should not be passed onto the son.
But, of course, this did not mean that they would accept the harm that the current generation was trying to inflict on them. If this generation insisted on destroying Talosheim as well, they would be crushed without mercy.
Darcia was in tears. "To think that my Vandalieu, who used to be so little… He's still so little, but he's become so great."
Vandalieu was glad that she was happy enough to cry tears of joy, but he did think that her comment that he was still small to be unnecessary.
"This is where Van-sama's legend as the high king begins, isn't it?" said Tarea.
Tarea, that kind of legend isn't going to begin.
Now then, today will end with the feast and celebrating with everyone. As for the explanation of the defense policies against the expedition army and what we'll be doing until they arrive, that can come tomorrow.
It might appear that Vandalieu was taking it easy, but it was currently the end of summer. The enemy would be coming in spring at earliest.
In addition, there were surveillance Undead and Golems placed in set intervals in the areas that the expedition army would pass through once they came out of the tunnel.
Once the army approached, Vandalieu would know right away. Even if a small number of spies were sent separately from the army, he would know about it. The city's walls also essentially acted as surveillance Golems, and even if they made it past the walls, the city was filled with Golems.
Cemetery Bees were flying about in the air, making Vandalieu's surveillance network even greater.
Mhmm, everything's perfect.
『You have acquired the Title of 'Eclipse King'!』
… I suppose I had no choice but to gain this Title.
Vandalieu had thought it might be possible that he wouldn't receive an additional Title, as 'Prophesized Holy Son' had never become a Title, but it seemed that this wasn't the case.
Well, I already have 'Ghoul King' as a Title. I've just received two king-like Titles, so I guess it's fine.
As he thought this and looked at everyone, something suddenly occurred to him.
Ah, there is a thing, or maybe it should be called a component, that we all have in common. I don't know if I can make use of it, but it's worth testing.
But this wasn't the time or place to test it, so Vandalieu spent the day with everyone, enjoying the feast of foods such as boat-wrapped sashimi*, Needle Wolf miso hotpots, dinosaur steaks, and fruit agar made with Kobol fruits and honey.
Bormack Gordan was wearing his priest's garb without his armor, listening to the opinions of the priest-warriors that he led. His appearance was that of a good-natured old man. Not only Vandalieu, but anyone who had seen him fighting, would doubt their eyes at seeing him like this.
"So, you all think that we should not participate in the Mirg shield-nation's expedition, is that right?" Gordan asked his subordinates.
"Yes, High Priest-sama. No matter how many times I think about it, I believe we should use our power for other things," said a young boy, barely old enough to be a priest warrior. He seemed nervous, but he voiced his views clearly.
"We priest-warriors are not soldiers or adventurers. We should not be commanded by the nation's circumstances."
"We do not hesitate to fight against monsters. But is there any meaning in serving on the expedition?"
Priest-warriors had originated as priests of Churches in remote areas, armed for the purpose of hunting dangerous wild beasts, long before the Demon King created monsters in this world.
In the present era, they were clergymen who wielded military power to protect the Church and its believers, and to spread their teachings to people living in distant regions.
For such priest-warriors, the expedition into the Boundary Mountain Range that was to occur in next year's spring was not something that excited them.
They were learned men. It was clear to them that there were political motives behind the expedition, just as there had been for the expedition to Talosheim two hundred years ago.
And there were no people that needed protecting beyond the Boundary Mountain Range.
These two facts made them refuse to participate in the expedition.
"We believers of Alda, the god of law and fate, are taught to fight against monsters," said another priest-warrior. "For priest-warriors in particular, it is our duty to do so. We understand that there is meaning in fighting alongside the expedition army in the Boundary Mountain Range, where monsters are rampant and the remnants of Vida's races hide. But should we not prioritize the protection of the people who are directly exposed to the threat of monsters?"
The priest-warriors held the opinion that defending remote villages that were threatened by monsters and hunting down Vampires hiding in society, as well as those who had fallen to their temptations and were working with them, should take priority over fighting in dangerous, unexplored lands with the army.
It could also be considered a conservative opinion to want to choose their sense of duty and strictly adhering to their doctrine.
"Indeed, what you are saying is reasonable," said Gordan.
However, Gordan was also an individual who would choose conservative ideals over fame among the common people and financial gains. If he wasn't, he would not have refused the recommendations that he become the cardinal, nor would he continue fighting on the frontlines of battle as a warrior-priest even at this age.
"It is not that we are objecting to exterminating that Dhampir as you wished, High-Priest -"
"No, it matters not. That matter is nothing more than my own personal interest. There is no need to take that into consideration."
In the long life that he had lived up until now, Gordan had never let a target escape him. No matter how cunningly Vampires and Lamias had hidden from him, he had found them and exterminated them. He had returned numerous Dhampirs as well as their parents to the dust. With only one exception.
That exception was a Dhampir. His name was Vandalieu, and though his witch mother had been turned into ash and purified, he had survived as a six-month-old child and then gained the Spiritualist Job and become the leader of hundreds of Ghouls at less than three years old. A truly exceptional case among exceptional cases.
Vandalieu had used some unknown method to lead his Ghouls across the Boundary Mountain Range and escape. Gordan regretted that he had been unable to prevent that.
The fact that he used some unknown method to cross the mountain range means that it is possible that he will use that method to cross the mountain range again to attack us.
The southern regions of the Bahn Gaia continent, on the other side of the Boundary Mountain Range. That place was haunted by the races created by Vida, and the surviving Pure-breed Vampires who possessed immense power were said to dwell there as well.
Several hundred Ghouls might pose a threat to a single town, but if that Dhampir was left alone, a whole nation… No, the entire continent's existence could hang in the balance. That was how Gordan felt.
If that Dhampir gains even more subordinates, he could organize a monster army that can freely cross the Boundary Mountain Range that we cannot traverse, and the regions both east and west of the mountain range may be destroyed.
That was why when Gordan had been asked whether he would participate in an expedition into the Boundary Mountain Range now that the tunnel had been discovered, his heart had pounded with excitement in a way quite unfitting for his age. He had no doubt that this was an opportunity granted to him by Alda himself.
However, the expedition's objectives were to recover the national treasure that was lost in the expedition of two hundred years ago, and to purify Talosheim.
It was only natural; it was only Gordan who personally regarded Vandalieu as dangerous. Detailed information wouldn't have been passed on to the upper echelons of the Mirg shield-nation and Amid Empire with the exception of Palpapek, who was the marshal back then.
When Gordan thought about it calmly, even if the Boundary Mountain Range was traversed, the southern regions of the continent were vast. There was little hope of finding Vandalieu in such a place. The only way he would be found was if he was already ready and waiting for the expedition army.
That Dhampir is cunning and wary. He will run without hesitation if he believes he cannot win. Conversely, if we do encounter him, it will be only when he believes he will win.
As far as Gordan could imagine, Vandalieu would not appear even if Gordan were to join the expedition army.
Only two years had passed since then. It was impossible for Vandalieu to have gathered enough fighting strength to emerge victorious against thousands of elite soldiers. If he were to barricade himself in a fortified city… in Talosheim, there might be a chance, but large holes had been made in that city's walls in the war of two hundred years ago. They had likely collapsed by now.
That was why it was pointless to participate in the expedition.
"Alright, I understand how you feel very well. I will go and reject the proposal of joining the expedition," Gordan decided.
But that night, as he offered his prayers to Alda before he slept, he received a Divine Message like the ones he had received on several previous occasions.
[The Demon King's shadow stirs once more. It must be found and destroyed.]
"This is… Oh, my lord Alda! You are telling me to cross the Boundary Mountain Range and slay that Dhampir, aren't you!"
Gordan interpreted that it was Alda's plan rather than coincidence that he had received a Divine Message on the night he had decided to decline participating in the expedition.
And in his mind, he linked the Demon King's shadow to Vandalieu.
This deduction was hastily made with a gaping hole in its logic in the fact that not even the first letter of Vandalieu's name was mentioned in the Divine Message. But nobody, not even Alda who was the one who had sent the Divine Message, would have imagined that this deduction was correct.
Vandalieu succeeded in creating a virus to use in the war!
"It's transmissible through air, across mucous membranes and through blood, and it takes effect within five seconds. Its symptoms are only violent nausea, headaches, dizziness, fevers, stomach pain and joint pain, so it takes several days to kill the target, and it will kill less than ten percent of those it infects. But I suppose this will do," Vandalieu concluded.
Vandalieu nodded, looking at the Double-headed Tyrannosaurus that was lying on the ground with its tongue hanging out, creating a stain made of saliva, gastric juice and nasal mucus.
"… Bocchan, I think that's plenty for an incurable disease," said Rita.
"If this disease spread to the Mirg shield-nation and the Amid Empire, the nations would stop functioning," said Saria.
"You're right," Vandalieu agreed. "But they have life-attribute mages and great priests of Alda, so it should be fine."
"Treating diseases with magic is considerably difficult, and different spells are needed to cure different illnesses, so I believe it may not go so well," said Sam.
"There are people who have the Disease Resistance skill and the Disease and Poison Resistance skill that offers resistance against both diseases and poison, but they're quite rare," Kachia added.
According to Sam and Kachia, neither the Amid Empire nor the Mirg shield-nation's plans to deal with an epidemic were very sophisticated.
They knew of soaking affected parts in alcohol or hot water, but there were no antibiotics in this world. Potions, healing spells and resistance skills existed in their place, but as dealing with diseases went, they were imperfect.
Though there were Potions to treat diseases, they were expensive and didn't work against all kinds of diseases. It was more commonplace to drink antidote Potions to neutralize toxins that had accumulated in the body to lessen the symptoms.
The development of healing spells was slow and they were not very advanced. Even if a cold was cured by increasing Vitality, using the same spell on a cancer patient would cause cancer cells to metastasize all over the body and cause the patient to die almost immediately.
Treating diseases with spells would be impossible without advancements in anatomy and physiology, knowledge of how the body works and how pathogens affect their hosts, and technological innovations.
As for resistance skills, few adventurers and knights possessed skills that granted resistance to disease. Most monsters possessed resistance to poison rather than disease, and assassins and mercenaries used poison rather than disease anyway. That was why Poison Resistance was fairly common, but Disease Resistance was rare.
Those with such weak constitutions that caused them to fall ill frequently enough to acquire resistance skills wouldn't think to become adventurers.
"Have I created something unexpectedly dangerous?" Vandalieu wondered. "But I made it so that its effects will stop after half a day, so I guess it will be fine."
Even if the disease did spread, there wouldn't be any casualties since it stopped working in half a day, and with the population density in this world, it wouldn't spread beyond a single village or town. If something unexpected did occur, Vandalieu would simply have to use brute force with his Mana, casting a wide-area Sterilization.
It was as Vandalieu was justifying the creation of the disease to himself with these excuses that Rita and Saria had come to have a look.
"So, Bocchan, shouldn't we finish it off now?" asked Rita.
Saria nodded. "Or are we going to wait for half a day?"
"No, we should finish it now. Please go ahead," said Vandalieu.
"Okay," said the sisters in unison.
Their white buttocks shook side to side as they approached the Double-headed Tyrannosaurus, and the glaive and halberd each swung down into one of its two necks.
White buttocks indeed. It seemed that Rita and Saria's Spirit Form skill had increased, allowing them to eat to their hearts' content and finally gaining appearances that were no different to those of living people.
Like Vandalieu, their skin was as white as if they had smeared thick candle wax over it, making it difficult to call healthy-looking, but it was not really a problem.
Saria, the older one, had a reserved appearance with hair flowing down her back to her waist, while Rita's appearance was that of an energetic, beautiful girl with her hair gathered to either side in twin tails.
And both of them had figures matching their suits of armor.
Their spirit form bodies had previously resembled stick figures or people wearing whole-body tights, making it impossible to distinguish whether they were male or female, but now the chest-pieces of their armor were bulging without leaving any spare space, their waists were narrow and their buttocks were round and ripe-looking. Because one's armor was high-leg and the other's was low-rise, about half of their surface area was exposed, too.
What a great temptation they are, thought Vandalieu. His body was still that of a child so he only had a mental sense of these kinds of things, but… He was at an age where it wouldn't be strange for him to fall in love for the first time in a few years if he were an ordinary child. He decided that he would make the two of them start wearing capes before then.
Incidentally, when those two had first gained these appearances, they were clamoring about it in high spirits.
"Please look, Bocchan!" Rita had exclaimed. "There isn't any spare space, not even a millimeter! They're filled to the point that there isn't any extra room at all! And my waist is so narrow! I'm really glad that I repeatedly told everyone I'm beautiful and sexy every day!"
"Uwah! This is really delicious, Bocchan!" Saria had cried. "Mayonnaise, miso and everything else! The Orc shougayaki*, dinosaur fritters, Flying Shark in miso, and I cannot get enough of eating sashimi with fish sauce and wasabi!"
Rita had been proud of her (spirit form) body, while Saria had been engrossed in eating all of the different kinds of food she had been unable to eat so far, one after another.
I've made them endure a lot and asked a lot of them; next time I make a Living Armor, I should make them learn the Spirit Form skill right away, Vandalieu had thought as the two of them manipulated him that day… Not verbally, but physically.
Spirit Form is a skill that grants Undead and other creatures not only an appearance, but allows them to physically manifest body parts in place of muscles and bones. As a result, Saria and Rita's strength increased rapidly.
Incidentally, as to be expected with high-leg leotard armor and bikini armor, there was no end to the people asking them whether they were sufficiently protected considering that their suits of armor left them so exposed.
No matter how much they resembled humans, spirit form was no more than that, spirit form. Even if their heads were crushed, their chests and stomachs pierced or their exposed thighs were slashed, they didn't have flesh with circulating blood or bones, let alone internal organs. They would feel some pain, but their spirit form bodies were simply extra parts manifested from their main bodies.
If it was dangerous, they could simply stop manifesting it and return to being hollow suits of armor.
"Bocchan, please laugh at my foolishness," Sam said suddenly, looking rather unhappy. "Now I understand why you asked me back then if it was really alright to put my daughters in these suits of armor."
Before Sam's eyes were his two daughters, whose bodies were only slightly more covered than if they were wearing nothing but underwear because their armors had wrist-guards and leg-guards. Their appearances were enough to captivate the eyes of any man.
Incidentally, for some reason, there had apparently been no attempts to flirt with them by Ghoul males. It was probably because they were Vandalieu's personal guards.
"Well, I didn't think it would be this bad, either," said Vandalieu. "And there are a lot of ways to solve the problem, like making them wear capes or wrapping them in cloths.
But changing the suits of armor would be impossible. They were the main bodies of those two, after all.
"Hey, would it be better if I dressed like that as well?" asked Kachia.
"Kachia, please stay dressed as you are." Vandalieu had been asked the same question by Eleanora the other day, so he gave Kachia the same answer. If those two dressed like the Living Armor sisters, their bodies would lack protection. Kachia in particular, as she didn't have regenerative abilities like Eleanora.
… Before that, if he made all of the women dress in revealing clothing, it was possible that he would acquire Titles like Erotic King or Lust King in addition to his Titles of Ghoul King and Eclipse King. These would be Titles that caused his social demise if they appeared on his Status with no beneficial effects in return.
"For now, let���s move on. I want to level up before spring comes, too," said Vandalieu.
"Okay," said Rita.
"Bocchan, I wish to increase my level a little as well," said Sam.
"Ah, I leveled up!" Kachia exclaimed. "I'm finally a level 100 Warrior! I can change Jobs~!"
『Vandalieu's[Unarmed Fighting Technique]and[Bloodsucking]skills have leveled up!』
『You have acquired the[Coordination]skill!』
Name: Saria
Rank: 6
Race: High Magic High-Leg Armor
Level: 35
Passive skills:
Special Five Senses
Physical Ability Enhancement: Level 4 (LEVEL UP!)
Water Element Resistance: Level 3 (LEVEL UP!)
Physical Attack Resistance: Level 3 (LEVEL UP!)
Active skills:
Housework: Level 2
Halberd Technique: Level 5 (LEVEL UP!)
Coordination: Level 3 (LEVEL UP!)
Archery: Level 3 (LEVEL UP!)
Spirit Form: Level 4 (LEVEL UP!)
Long-distance Control: Level 3 (NEW!)
Armor Technique: Level 3 (NEW!)
Name: Rita
Rank: 6
Race: High Magic Bikini Armor
Level: 36
Passive skills:
Special Five Senses
Physical Ability Enhancement: Level 4 (LEVEL UP!)
Fire Element Resistance: Level 3 (LEVEL UP!)
Physical Attack Resistance: Level 3 (LEVEL UP!)
Active skills:
Housework: Level 1
Naginata Technique: Level 5 (LEVEL UP!)
Coordination: Level 3 (LEVEL UP!)
Archery: Level 2 (LEVEL UP!)
Throwing: Level 1 (NEW!)
Spirit Form: Level 4 (LEVEL UP!)
Long-distance Control: Level 3 (NEW!)
Armor Technique: Level 3 (NEW!)
Title explanation:
[Eclipse King]
The condition for acquiring this Title is to become the King of Talosheim while becoming known as the Eclipse King rather than as the Sun King, and being acknowledged as such by over ninety percent of its inhabitants.
Its main effect is that the Strengthen Followers skill will affect all citizens ruled by the Eclipse King (Even if they are humans, Elves or Dwarves).
In addition, it makes it possible for races without the Night Vision skill can gain the Night Vision skill, and those without the Dark Vision skill to gain the Dark Vision skill.
Finally, it makes it possible for those with a weakness to sunlight or moonlight to gain skills with resistance against them.
Name: Bormack Gordan
Age: 65
Title: Vampire Hunter
Job: Demon-Crushing Holy Warrior
Job Level: 97
Job history: Apprentice Priest-warrior, Priest-warrior, Priest, Holy Warrior
Passive skills:
Enhanced Senses: Level 3
Intuition: Level 5
Holy Enhancement (Alda): Level 10
Mental Fortitude: Level 3
Active skills:
Club Technique: Level 9
Armor Technique: Level 6
Shield Technique: Level 7
Light-Attribute Magic: Level 6
Life-Attribute Magic: Level 5
No-Attribute Magic: Level 1
Mana Control: Level 4
Surpass Limits: Level 6
Familiar Spirit Descent: Level 1
Clergyman: Level 5
Commanding: Level 3
Coordination: Level 4
Unique skills:
Divine Message Receipt
Status Effects:
Fanaticism: Religion
Aging (Omen)
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Chapter 58: The toiling soldiers and the Eclipse King serving beautiful women
"I'll bet on Ent-user," said Vigaro.
"Heh," Borkus snorted. "How naïve. I'll be betting on Armor Master."
"Hmm, how difficult…" Zadiris paused to think. "How about the Golem Factory Manager? Those Golems that are lined up are called a factory, are they not?"
"Umm, what are you betting on?" asked Vandalieu.
Vandalieu had come to the remains of the Adventurers' Guild - which should probably be relabeled as a distribution center or trading post - to get a Job change, and spotted Vigaro and Borkus betting on something.
If there were at least cards in their hands… No, there were no playing cards in this world as paper was a precious material, but Vandalieu wouldn't have considered this unnatural if they at least had something resembling cards.
Zadiris looked up. "Ah, boy, this is, well, every time you undergo a Job-change, there are new Jobs, are there not?"
Vandalieu had received the 'Unable to learn existing Jobs' curse, but every time he visited the Job-changing room, there were new Jobs that hadn't existed before displayed for him. Vandalieu had consulted the knowledgeable Zadiris and experienced adventurer Borkus regarding this.
Of course, as the Jobs hadn't existed before, they could offer no knowledge on the Jobs themselves, but he could ask them to make guesses on Jobs that were similar to existing Jobs.
Incidentally, after his coronation ceremony, Vandalieu had explained his circumstances to everyone in Talosheim. The Ghouls, Undead Titans and even the Cemetery Bees and Immortal Ents. Everyone, without exception, was now aware that Vandalieu had lived two previous lives, that he was a human from another world, that he had been cursed by the god of reincarnation and that one hundred people would be reincarnated in this world from Origin one day.
The reactions to that had been -
"I don't really get it, but that's amazing!"
"I knew you weren't an ordinary kid, but that's amazing!"
"You lived on a continent called Another World in your previous life? On an island? A country called Earth, huh. Amazing."
Buzzing from the Cemetery Bees.
Rustling from the Immortal Ents.
Well, it seemed to have been accepted. It also seemed that nobody really understood anything about other worlds, though they did have a grasp of the concept of reincarnation.
There were apparently many among the Undead Titans who had a vague idea of his circumstances. Thinking about it, a child had created the legendary flavorings left by the Champion Zakkart, miso and soy sauce (or, to be more precise, fish sauce). It was only natural for them to wonder whether the Holy Son was also from another world.
Vandalieu had already been marked as an enemy by Alda, the god of law and fate who possessed the most influence in this world, the gods who served him as well as the Pure-breed Vampires who worshipped an evil god. An unknown god named Rodcorte had cursed him, but even Rodcorte was apparently just another god to add to the list of enemies so it wasn't considered surprising.
What a reliable and happy response.
Leaving that aside, what would happen with Vandalieu's Job?
��So we are placing bets on what Job will appear for you next," Zadiris told him.
"Leaving aside which Job you'll actually choose, kid, there's going to be new Jobs that you can actually change to, right?" said Borkus.
"What do you think will appear?" asked Vigaro.
Vandalieu looked at them. "… New Jobs are normally discovered once every few decades or centuries, if I recall?"
Right after the age of the gods was a turning point in this world were new Jobs like Knight and Soldier were discovered one after another. However, as time went on, the discovery of new Jobs became more and more infrequent.
That was why each Guild, including the Adventurers' Guild, offered a cash reward to those who discovered new Jobs.
"But you know, you've been discovering new Jobs one after another for the past two years, haven't you, kid?" Borkus pointed out.
"That's why we thought that there would be more new Jobs," said Vigaro.
"… Don't get angry at me if there aren't any new ones, okay?" Vandalieu told them.
"So, boy, what kind of new Jobs do you think there will be?" Zadiris asked him.
Vandalieu gave Zadiris's question a little thought before answering. "Tree Planter, perhaps?"
Vandalieu was probably the first person in Lambda who had created Ents from seeds, so this was the answer that he had come to.
He was also continuing to plant trees found in the Dungeons and Devil's Nests and turning them into Immortal Ents.
"Tree Planter? There are already people doing that in human countries," said Borkus. "Not that anyone has a Job for it."
"Eh? Really?" Vandalieu asked.
In Earth's history, deforested areas had often been left as they were, causing an increase in bare mountains and wastelands in areas with dry climates. But it seemed that people planted trees in Lambda.
"Yeah, apparently it began from people planting trees in the lands destroyed during the battle between the champions and the Demon King," Borkus told him.
… It seemed that even Bellwood wouldn't have advocated to deny the planting of trees and insisted on waiting for the greenery to recover naturally.
But perhaps the champion Suzuki had been a radical advocate of nature conservation on Earth. This might explain why he had allowed afforestation while forbidding technology from another world.
Well, it was certainly possible that afforestation had been occurring prior to the Demon King's appearance and there were simply no records of it remaining.
"So, what are you actually betting?" asked Vandalieu.
As there was currently no currency being used in Talosheim, the trading of goods was being done through bartering. For now, there weren't any items being prominently used in place of currency, either.
Vandalieu thought that food was probably the closest thing there was.
"I am wagering fern tea," replied Zadiris.
"My bet is dried and salted Ammonite," Vigaro declared.
"Mine is the meat I took off a Noble Orc before," said Borkus. "You can hunt quite a lot of them in Barigen's Fall Life-Mountain."
Vandalieu decided to make his own wager. "Well then, I'll bet some honey that there won't be any new Jobs."
"Boy, why is your wager so pessimistic?" asked Zadiris.
"If good things continue for too long, you never know when your good luck is going to run out. I'm scared of that," Vandalieu told her.
With those words, he departed for the Job-changing room.
『Jobs that can be selected:[Soul Breaker],[Venom Fist User],[Insect User],[Archenemy],[Zombie Maker],[Tree Caster]』
Despite Vandalieu's expectations, there were two new Jobs.
"Zombie Maker and Tree Caster… I suppose Tree Caster is read 'Ki-jutsushi*'. I'm sure that's there because I've made Immortal Ents from seeds and branches and every other part of a tree possible, but…"
It seemed more like being a magic performer. In Lambda, they weren't known as magicians, but as magic performers who made their living as entertainers at parties or as street performers.
Was it a plant-monster version of the Tamer Job + something that made it easier to create plant monsters?
However, unlike Undead and insectoid monsters, it should be possible to tame plant monsters normally… Well, Vandalieu would think about that later.
The more mysterious one was the Zombie Maker Job. Gubamon and Ternecia, Pure-breed Vampires who created and controlled Undead with the divine protection of the Evil God of Joyful Life, had existed in this world for a hundred thousand years.
Vandalieu had thought that they would have already discovered and acquired Jobs such as Zombie Maker or Ghost Mage.
"Could it be that they haven't acquired Jobs… or can't?" Vandalieu wondered.
Perhaps they had become too much like monsters and lost the ability to acquire Jobs when they began worshipping the evil god. Vandalieu made this guess with no evidence, but as Eleanora didn't know the race titles of the Pure-breed Vampires, it was impossible to confirm this. Vandalieu would leave finding this out for another opportunity.
For now, leaving aside the fact that he had lost his bet, the question was, which Job should he choose next? But…
"For improving our fighting strength as a whole, it would be Insect User or Tree Caster. But Riley, a former companion of Heinz, is going to be among the army coming in spring."
Vandalieu wasn't thinking that he would kill Riley by his own hand at any cost. Even if there was an opportunity to do so, if it would cause strategic problems, he would give up on the idea without hesitation.
He firmly believed that everyone would be capable of taking revenge for him.
However, if the reason for him giving up on killing Riley personally was his own powerlessness, it was a different matter. Vandalieu wouldn't be able to stand that.
"… I'll choose Soul Breaker."
That was why Vandalieu selected the Soul Breaker Job.
『The levels of the Spirit Form, Soul Break and Long-distance Control skills have increased!』
『You have acquired the Parallel Thought Processing and Materialization skills!』
Name: Vandalieu
Race: Dhampir (Dark Elf)
Age: 5 years old
Title:[Ghoul King],[Eclipse King]
Job: Soul Breaker
Level: 0
Job history: Death-Attribute Mage, Golem Transmuter, Undead Tamer
Attributes:
Vitality: 125
Mana: 247,013,388
Strength: 90
Agility: 89
Stamina: 95
Intelligence: 457
Passive skills:
Superhuman Strength: Level 1
Rapid Healing: Level 3
Death-Attribute Magic: Level 5
Status Effect Resistance: Level 5
Magic Resistance: Level 1
Dark Vision
Mental Corruption: Level 10
Death-Attribute Charm: Level 5
Chant Revocation: Level 3
Strengthen Followers: Level 7
Automatic Mana Recovery: Level 3
Strengthen Subordinates: Level 4 (LEVEL UP!)
Active skills:
Bloodsucking: Level 4 (LEVEL UP!)
Surpass Limits: Level 4
Golem Transmutation: Level 6
No-Attribute Magic: Level 4
Mana Control: Level 4
Spirit Form: Level 4 (LEVEL UP!)
Carpentry: Level 4
Engineering: Level 3
Cooking: Level 3 (LEVEL UP!)
Alchemy: Level 3
Unarmed Fighting Technique: Level 3 (LEVEL UP!)
Soul Break: Level 3 (LEVEL UP!)
Multi-Cast: Level 3
Long-distance Control: Level 3 (LEVEL UP!)
Surgery: Level 1 (NEW!)
Materialization: Level 1 (NEW!)
Coordination: Level 1 (NEW!)
Parallel Thought Processing: Level 1 (NEW!)
Unique skills:
God Slayer: Level 1
Curses
Experience gained in previous life not carried over
Cannot learn existing jobs
Unable to gain experience independently
The moment Vandalieu changed Jobs, his Spirit Form, Long-distance Control and Soul Break skills leveled up as a result of the skill bonuses. It seemed that the Soul Breaker Job granted bonuses to spirit-related skills.
And he had acquired the Parallel Thought Processing and Materialization skills, but… what were they? Vandalieu guessed that they were probably also skills related to spirits or souls.
Vandalieu thought it unusual that his fighting ability hadn't increased as much as he'd hoped for.
"… Should I have chosen Venom Fist User? Or maybe I should have just resigned to taking the Archenemy Job."
Well, Soul Break was a skill that granted an additional effect to his magical and physical attacks. It would likely increase his ability to fight.
Vandalieu consoled himself by telling himself this and left the room. He reported the results to Zadiris and the others who were waiting for him on the first floor and treated them to honey.
And then he headed for Borkus's Sub-Dragon Savannah as he had been doing since last year.
Though winter's footsteps could already be heard and Talosheim was surrounded by mountains to both the east and the west, the sunlight was still strong in the afternoon.
In the courtyard behind the royal castle was a stone monument to the Sun Giant Talos and the goddess Vida, and this was the spot in Talosheim that was said to receive the most sunlight.
In fact, the sunlight was very strong in the courtyard for some reason. It was as if it was summer. It was possible that the stone monument to Talos and Vida was the cause of this.
"Ugh, ah, hic."
"Hah, ah, th-there, it's so deep!"
"I… kuah*, ah, it's hot, it's like my body's burning!"
"I-I can't take any more, don't pour any more into me, it's going to overflow!"
In that courtyard, there were beautiful women gasping for breath with their skin exposed.
"… I can stop anytime," Vandalieu said to the four beautiful women… Bilde, Basdia, Eleanora and Kachia. What a tempting sight, he thought.
They weren't doing anything particularly immoral or flirtatious.
There was a reason for this.
"No!" Eleanora cried. "I can still keep going!" White smoke was rising from her white skin, but this had all began when she said that she wanted to acquire the Sunlight Resistance skill in preparation for the war in spring.
Sunlight, silver and light-attribute magic attacks are universal weaknesses shared by all Vampires. The Status Effect Resistance skill does not offer them any defense against them, and skills like Sunlight Resistance and Silver Resistance cannot be acquired.
However, circumstances were different for Eleanora. As Vandalieu had acquired the Title of Eclipse King, it was possible for her to acquire the Sunlight Resistance skill.
The Mirg shield-nation's expedition army that would approach in the spring would surely attack during the day. No human would dare fight during the night, knowing that their foes were monsters that could see in the dark.
There would probably be Vampire assassins mixed in among the expedition army's forces, but they would cover themselves with a thick coat or full plate armor in order to prevent the sunlight from reaching their skin. There would be nothing more conspicuous if they were to do this in the middle of a town, but among the expedition army, they wouldn't stand out at all.
Also, the Vampires would likely participate in the expedition posing as the private forces of noblemen or as mercenaries rather than as part of the regular army, so the fact that they wore different equipment from the regular army wouldn't cause any problems.
Vandalieu had thought that it would be fine if Eleanora learned from their example and wore a heavy coat and veil or a suit of plate armor, but she was used to being agile in battle. Wearing some metal armor would slow her movements down only a little, but there was still time until spring so she had decided that it would be better to acquire the Sunlight Resistance skill.
And so, in this place where the sunlight was strong despite winter being close, she was busily sunbathing in order to acquire this resistance skill.
The sunlight was burning her as she was dressed in a stimulating way, having only her chest and her waist covered by pieces of cloth. She was healing her burns with her Rapid Regeneration skill, and Vandalieu was supplying her with Mana when she ran out.
It was quite the Spartan training regime, but for some reason Eleanora had shown incredible enthusiasm at the idea.
Vandalieu hadn't been spoiling her lately, so he had decided to let her have her way.
And then Bilde, Basdia and Kachia had passed by, resulting in the current situation. Of course, as Ghouls, they had no need to acquire the Sunlight Resistance skill. They were simply training in magic while having Vandalieu supply them with Mana.
"But Vandalieu, your (spirit form) hands are rubbing me (in stiff spots)…" Bilde mumbled.
"That's right," said Basdia. "Since you keep pressing those things you call acupuncture points, we can't help but let out strange noises, Van."
For Bilde and Basdia, Vandalieu was not only providing them with Mana, but also giving them the same spirit-form massage that he had once given Tarea as their bodies had apparently grown stiff with fatigue recently.
He was using Spirit Form Transformation on his hands, sinking them into their bodies and directly stimulating their stiff muscles and acupuncture points. He was effectively a low-frequency massager that was conscious.
"And… are there these acupuncture point things in places like this as well?" Basdia asked in embarrassment.
"There are," replied Vandalieu.
Acupuncture points are found in places like the top of the head and the soles of the feet, but there are also many in places that people of the opposite sex might be hesitant to touch. Vandalieu was saying, "I'm going to press the acupuncture point here," and pressing the points in such places. He was carefree about it because his hands had undergone Spirit Form Transformation and had branched out into tentacle-like shapes, so he couldn't feel the sensation, warmth or softness of their skin other than being conscious that he was touching a living creature.
"I see… Then it's fine, but…"
Of course, he wasn't trying to sexually harass Basdia, so he wasn't touching her or pressing her in persistent ways.
Incidentally, in Origin, where science and magic had co-existed, Qigong* had been acknowledged as a form of magic. Eastern medicinal techniques such as pressing acupuncture points, acupuncture treatment and moxibustion were as well-researched as western medicine, and were widely used.
As a result, Vandalieu had been thoroughly subjected to experiments to see whether death-attribute magic could be applied to Eastern medicine.
If he used Spirit Form transformation to examine a creature's body, he could intuitively feel the locations and effects of acupuncture points in the creature's body. Because of this, he had a clear understanding of the locations and effects of Ghoul-specific acupuncture points that didn't exist in humans.
Applying death-attribute magic to Eastern medicine apparently hadn't had much success in Origin, however.
"Ah, it isn't that I dislike you touching me," Basdia said hastily. "In fact, I'm happy, but I'm just perplexed when you're suddenly so assertive."
"No, it's not really a matter of being assertive or not," said Vandalieu. "Of course, it's not that I don't want to touch you, Basdia."
This was a massage. It was rather difficult to describe as Vandalieu's hands had undergone Spirit Transformation and branched out into tentacles, but it was still no more than a massage. There was no lewd meaning behind it.
Kachia was breathing heavily. "Van… You gave me… too much Mana."
Vandalieu was doing nothing but supplying her with magic, but this was how things were.
"Hmm, but I only transferred you a small amount, you know?" Vandalieu told her.
"That 'small amount' is too much! My maximum Mana pool is less than two hundred, isn't it!"
Kachia, who had undergone a Job-change to Apprentice Mage, had a maximum Mana pool of less than two hundred. Ghoul women had an aptitude for magic, so Kachia's Mana pool was a little smaller than average, but it was greater than the average Ghoul man's Mana pool.
This was probably because of the fact that she had once been a human, and that she had once been an adventurer in a frontline role on the battlefield.
Frontline fighters like Warriors and Knights have less Mana than those like mages who fight from the back. However, they have higher Attribute Values for Vitality, Strength, Stamina and Agility to compensate for it.
Unlike mages, the Mana of frontline fighters is not consumed unless they use martial skills, so this is only natural. In fact, those with more Mana than Vitality wouldn't choose to fight at the front.
Kachia had been a frontline fighter, and the way her Attribute Values increased when she became a Ghoul had been influenced by that. The increase in her Mana had been relatively greater than the increase of her other Attribute Values, but since her Mana value was small to begin with, the resulting value after the increase was still small.
She had undergone a Job-change to Apprentice Mage with this small Mana pool, but because her Mana was lacking, she couldn't practice magic enough and she was finding it quite difficult to level her skills up.
That was why Vandalieu was accompanying her and providing her Mana for her to practice, but… The problem was Vandalieu's senses.
A 'small amount of Mana' for Vandalieu, whose Mana pool was over 200,000,000, could be in the tens of thousands. Two hundred would be a fraction of 'a tiny pinch' of Mana for him.
Because of that, whenever Kachia ran out of Mana, Vandalieu poured into her what he regarded as 'a tiny pinch' of Mana, numbering in the dozens.
Nobody could blame Kachia for gasping and saying that she was "overflowing."
"That's true, but there's no harm to your body caused by the overflowing Mana, is there?" asked Vandalieu.
"No, you're right, but it's incredibly…" Kachia looked troubled.
"Well, your Mana has recovered, so please continue your practice."
"No way, if I keep practicing, my Mana will disappear again right away…"
"If it does, I'll transfer you some more."
Kachia made noises of discontent. For some reason, there were tears in her eyes as she continued her practice. Bilde and Basdia had already restarted their practice before her.
Incidentally, Bilde possessed an affinity for the earth attribute, Basdia possessed an affinity for the water attribute while Kachia possessed an affinity for four attributes - fire, wind, light and space. Though Bilde could be considered average, Basdia's talent as a mage was meager which was why she had decided in the past that the Ghoul village would benefit more from her learning martial skills and was completely absorbed in learning those instead. In Kachia's case, she had been told that it would be a miracle if her magic could even be considered useful at all, so she had given up on magic before even starting out on that road.
However, because Basdia's Rank had increased and Kachia had transformed into a Ghoul and undergone a Job-change, their Attribute Values such as Mana and Intelligence had increased enough for them to be able to practice like this.
Incidentally, like Eleanora, the other three were also wearing revealing clothes. This was because it was normal Ghoul fashion to do so, but they had taken even more clothes off because their bodies were 'too hot'.
No matter how strong the sunlight was, it was incomprehensible.
Eleanora panted and groaned. "V-Vandalieu-sama, just a little more, with just a little more, the skill…"
"Hmm, controlling the ground is hard. How do you do it, King?" Bilde asked.
"Alright, once more from the top," said Basdia, firing herself up.
Kachia sighed. "If I don't hurry and gain more skills, I'm going to become addicted to this."
Eleanora's snow-white skin turned a painful-looking red, then back to white. In contrast, the skin of Bilde and Kachia was a beautiful, healthy-looking gray-brown, while Basdia's skin was of the same color but a little stronger, with red lines running across it and emphasizing her curves.
The exposed curves of their bodies were shaking in a stimulating way. Vandalieu had wondered whether doing something like this in front of the stone monument would cause some kind of divine punishment, but apparently it wasn't a problem as Vida and Talos were gods who were very open to these kinds of things.
Come to think of it, I wonder if Vida will send me any Divine Messages?
Vandalieu did pray at the Church every day while he was in Talosheim, but it was something like lightly bowing his head to Ksitigarbha* on Earth, so perhaps it wasn't enough?
Since the prophecy given to Nuaza had been referring to Vandalieu, it was almost certain that Vida had taken notice of him, however.
Vandalieu decided that he would have Nuaza teach him how to pray properly.
In the cold winter air, the soldiers were busy doing hard carpentry work.
"It's good that we're getting paid, but when did we become slaves?" a soldier said bitterly. He and another soldier were working in a pair to transport stones.
The soldier he was paired with gave a bitter smile. "Hey, hey, slaves wouldn't be earning any pay or wages," he said. "Well, even if they did, they wouldn't be of any use here," he added.
The soldiers were at the exit of the tunnel leading to the Mirg shield-nation. They had been given the mission of building a simple fort there.
The inside of the tunnel had been swept clean of monsters by Riley, the hero praised as 'the second coming of the tragic hero', so it was safe to travel through. However, once the Boundary Mountain Range was crossed, the outside world was completely unrelated to the safety of the tunnel.
Rank 3 monsters that would normally only be encountered in Devil's Nests were rampant here, and monsters even stronger than them came to attack as if it were only natural for them to do so.
A fort was necessary to maintain the tunnel that led into the Boundary Mountain Range, into the southern reaches of the continent. Monsters needed to be prevented from entering the tunnel.
However, normal craftsmen wouldn't be able to work in a place where there was a constant risk of being eaten alive by monsters. Therefore, the Mirg shield-nation had dispatched soldiers for this task. A third of them were guarding the site where the fort was to be built, another third did the construction work and the other third would rest. It had been decided that they would rotate these roles in order to construct the makeshift fort.
In addition, dozens of adventurers, mostly consisting of Class individuals, had been hired to keep watch, scout the surrounding areas and defend the fort if necessary.
No monsters of Rank 5 or higher had appeared after the Green Wind Spear Riley and his party had exterminated several powerful monsters such as Rank 8 Stone Dragons, but it was just in case.
Because their defenses were solid, though some had been injured, no casualties had been suffered. The frontline in the war against the Orbaume Kingdom would be far more dangerous than this.
It was hard to believe that this was a cursed land where Vampires and Dragons ran rampant.
"Still, we're lacking amusement," one of the soldiers lamented.
Naturally, as this place was far from the nearest human settlement, there were no ways for the soldiers to amuse themselves. There were no peddlers, entertainers or prostitutes, and not only the soldiers, but even the adventurers had been forbidden from drinking alcohol so that they would be prepared for emergency situations.
The only thing they could look forward to was food, but even those were wartime rations of hard bread and dried meat with a little cheese and dried vegetables.
Riley had generously distributed Dragon meat while he was still here, but it would be cruel to expect the Class adventurers, who had been forced to accept this low-pay emergency request without being given a choice to refuse, to be as generous as an A-class hero adventurer who had signed a specialist contract with a general of the Amid Empire.
The Class adventurers were gathering rare materials from monsters that could only be found in the southern reaches of the continent, and kept the meat mainly to themselves. When they gathered more than they could eat, the army would sometimes buy it at reasonable prices, but… the chances of that meat being distributed to the ordinary soldiers were low.
"Ah man, come to think of it, I heard rumors that the S-class adventurer, the Thunderclap Schneider, declined to join the expedition," said one of the soldiers.
The other one snorted. "I'm sure an S-class adventurer-sama would be busy hanging out with the women who approach him. Ah, while we're working like this, I'm sure he's being served by multiple half-naked women at once… He should just go and die."
"Don't say any more. Let's just make sure we enjoy ourselves once we return to the town. Anyway, this fort-barrier is an important location for the upcoming expedition to Talosheim."
"That's true, but… do you think that we can participate in the expedition?"
"… It's impossible, huh."
Rumors had it that only the elite of the elite would be selected for the expedition. There was little hope for ordinary soldiers like them to participate in it. There were plenty of ordinary soldiers, and these two were mediocre even among them.
"Well, it's fine. Everything is according to Alda's guidance, as they say. I'm sure good things will happen if we just work hard."
"Yeah, yeah. Alda-sama, Alda-sama, we're working hard, so please bless us with popularity with the women at the bar."
"You should pray for a promotion instead."
The soldiers struck nails with their hammers as they joked around.
Name: Eleanora
Rank: 9
Race: Noble-born Vampire Viscount
Level: 47
Job: Vassal Warrior
Job level: 45
Job history: Slave, Servant, Apprentice Mage, Apprentice Warrior, Mage, Demon Eye User
Age: 8 years old (20 years old at time of Vampire transformation, 28 years old in total)
Passive skills:
Self-Enhancement: Subordination: Level 4 (LEVEL UP!)
Superhuman Strength: Level 6 (LEVEL UP!)
Rapid Regeneration: Level 3 (LEVEL UP!)
Status Effect Resistance: Level 6 (LEVEL UP!)
Intuition: Level 3
Mental Corruption: Level 3
Automatic Mana Recovery: Level 4 (LEVEL UP!)
Detect Presence: Level 3
Sunlight Resistance: Level 3 (NEW!)
Active skills:
Mining: Level 1
Time-Attribute Magic: Level 5
Life-Attribute Magic: Level 5
No-Attribute Magic: Level 2
Mana Control: Level 3
Swordsmanship: Level 3 (LEVEL UP!)
Unarmed Fighting Technique: Level 2 (LEVEL UP!)
Silent Steps: Level 4 (LEVEL UP!)
Steal: Level 1
Housework: Level 2
Shield Technique: Level 2 (NEW!)
Armor Technique: Level 1 (NEW!)
Surpass Limits: Level 2 (NEW!)
Chant Revocation: Level 1 (NEW!)
Unique skills:
Charming Demon Eyes: Level 7
Job Explanation:
[Vassal Warrior]
Also known as Gladiator. The owners of this skill can be referred to in various ways, but this is a Job that can be acquired when one gains close-quarters combat skills while being in a slave-like social position, and the Job owner's master grants permission for this Job-change. The slave-like social positioned is determined not by social structure or the Job owner's mental state, but by a worn sign such as a subordinate's collar or one engraved directly into the Job owner's body such as a tattoo or brand that acts as proof of subordination.
The bonuses to skills are fundamentally the same as the Warrior Job, but it also grants a bonus to the acquisition of skills such as Surpass Limits, Robust Health, Enhanced Muscular Strength as well as Self-Enhancement: Subordination, a skill that increases Attribute Values when acting as a Subordinate to another individual.
But unlike the Warrior Job, there is no bonus for skills such as the Armor Technique skill, so it is not a Job suited for Shield-bearers.
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Chapter 59: The Eclipse King is cursed by the marshal
Talosheim's total fighting strength was quite different now compared to the time when Vandalieu was just approaching his third birthday.
Vandalieu himself had grown strong, but more importantly, those around him had also grown stronger as a whole.
The only Ghouls remaining at Rank 3 were workers like Tarea and those of the newly-born generation. Most of the rest, including those like Bilde and Kachia, had become Rank 4 individuals with race titles such as Warriors, Grapplers, Archers and Little Mages.
Many had reached Rank 5, becoming Ghoul Barbarians, Ghoul Heavy Warriors and Ghoul Grappler Adepts.
They were developing incredibly quickly compared to regular Ghouls.
Though the Undead Titans had developed very little in the past two hundred years, they were now commuting to the Dungeons day and night, and most of them had at least increased their Ranks by 1. Braga and the others were also developing at a hectic pace.
In addition to them, the third city wall was a Stone Golem, and the Cemetery Bees had doubled in number. And though they could only be used in a defensive battle due to their limited mobility there were around a hundred Immortal Ents.
Those who could be called Vandalieu's personal guard don't even need to be mentioned.
There was one girl who raised her beloved mace, refusing to be overshadowed by the others.
"You can't do that."
"Eh…?!"
"Even if you make that surprised face, you can't," Vandalieu said to Pauvina, who was holding a stone mace that he had made for her after she had pestered him.
"I-I'm not a kid anymore!"
"No, you're only two years old."
"You're only five, Van, and you're smaller than me!"
"… Age and body size isn't the problem."
Pauvina, now two years old, was far larger than Vandalieu when it came to body size. Not horizontally, but vertically.
Not only was she large, but she had high Attribute Values. Her abnormal Strength value in particular wasn't something that an ordinary person could compete with. If someone were to have a serious arm wrestle with her, it was fairly likely that their bones would be broken or their hand would be crushed.
In regards to her strength, Vandalieu had sacrificed his own body to raise her, so it was apparent that she could do that without any problems.
"Then why can't I?!" Pauvina demanded.
"Your skills," replied Vandalieu. "You haven't learned any yet, have you, Pauvina?"
Skills were more important than Attribute Values in real battles, unlike arm-wrestling. The presence or absence of skills had a great influence on one's fighting strength.
"I've learned Club Technique!"
"It's still level 1, so you can't."
"Rapiéçage's is level 1 as well!"
Rapiéçage groaned and moved her eyeballs to look at Pauvina. Just recently, Rapiéçage had finally managed to acquire a level 1 skill in Unarmed Fighting Technique.
Vandalieu had used human spirits when creating her and had even torn up spirit mass that was floating about and added them into her. But though she could easily level up skills like Physical Resistance and Superhuman Strength, it seemed that it was difficult for her to gain martial-type skills.
But as her skills were leveling up, her fighting strength would certainly be increasing. She was still Rank 4, however. Also -
"If Rapiéçage gets injured, I can just replace her parts, but I can't replace you, can I, Pauvina?"
Indeed, Rapiéçage was a patchwork Zombie that Vandalieu had created by sewing together multiple corpses. Even if her limbs were broken and her head was cut off, he could cut parts off suitable corpses and sew them back onto her, and then she would be back to normal.
For some reason, not only Pauvina, but Rapiéçage seemed depressed at Vandalieu's words as well. Perhaps she was hurt by being told that it was fine for her to become injured.
Vandalieu realized that he could hurt others without being aware of it. He reflected on his actions and words, and decided that he would make it up to Rapiéçage with some mayonnaise later. But right now, Pauvina was the issue at hand.
Pauvina was Vandalieu's… it wasn't clear if she could be called his daughter, but at the very least, she was like his little sister. He was hesitant to bring her onto the battlefield and risk her life. She was only two years old, after all.
"Pauvina, I'll bring you to fight in wars or Dungeons when your skills reach level 5 or when you become an adult. So make sure you train yourself until then." As Vandalieu told her this, he handed her a late birthday present.
It was an iron mace to replace the stone one she had been using up until now.
"Uwah! Can I really use this?!" Pauvina's face lit up in excitement the moment she saw it… and for some reason, Rapiéçage seemed happy as well.
"Yeah, you can," said Vandalieu. "It's a present, after all."
"Thanks! My stone mace was hard to use because it was too light!" Pauvina happily started giving the iron mace a few practice swings.
Vandalieu gave a satisfied nod as he watched her.
He thought of Pauvina has his younger sister, but that was exactly why he thought it was his duty to raise her to be able to beat ten or twenty ordinary soldiers to death.
This world was harsh for those of Vida's races like Vandalieu, and there was a high chance that those who believed in Alda would consider Pauvina to be on Vida's side if they learned of her birth. That was why Pauvina needed to become strong.
Pauvina grunted as she swung her mace around. But why was Rapiéçage also happily swinging her empty fists in the air as well? As this question perplexed Vandalieu, he suddenly realized something.
Rapiéçage was imitating Pauvina and learning from her.
"Come to think of it, children like imitating their older siblings, don't they?"
It seemed that there was no need to make an effort to make more mayonnaise for now.
"How to pray to the goddess? What are you saying, Holy Son? Are you not already sufficiently adhering to Vida's teachings?"
This was Nuaza's response when Vandalieu visited him with concerns.
Vandalieu had expected that being baptized or using a proper praying method might cause Vida to send him a Divine Message, so this response was surprising.
In all honesty, Vandalieu had no recollection of praying to her properly at all. Though he had rebuilt the Church of Vida, he never went to it other than short visits with everyone before going into a Dungeon.
"Umm, please give me a detailed explanation," Vandalieu requested. "About Vida's rules, or her doctrine, or something."
"The doctrine of Vida, the goddess of life and love, is simple," said Nuaza. Celebrate life and love others. There are various smaller details, but even so, they are not what would be called rules."
Simple teachings like, 'Don't put your life to waste,' and, 'Treat your family, friends and lover with care,' apparently formed the foundation of Vida's doctrine.
There were various derivations from those fundamental principles; for the 'life' side of things, there were things like, 'Don't waste any food in your meals,' 'Share your food with the hungry,' and, 'Give short words of thanks before and after each meal.' When Nuaza had said that Vandalieu was adhering to Vida's teachings, he was referring to these, which Vandalieu had been following.
Japanese was spoken in this world. That was why Vandalieu had been using the Japanese habits of saying, 'Itadakimasu,' and 'Gochisousama,' without even thinking about it, and he generally ate anything without being picky. And he was sharing his food with others in the form of the new flavorings that he had created, which were being distributed to everyone.
"Ah, I am indeed following them," said Vandalieu once he realized this.
However, the doctrine was strangely similar to Japanese culture. These tendencies were probably present to begin with, and the doctrine had might have grown even more similar to Japanese culture after Zakkart's arrival a hundred thousand years ago.
But the 'love' part was not very similar to Japanese culture. It seemed that the goddess had quite an assertive nature.
"What about ceremonies?" asked Vandalieu.
"There are none in particular," Nuaza replied. "Well, there are wedding ceremonies, divorce announcements, prayers for planting crops, prayers for harvesting them and coming of age ceremonies," he added.
It didn't seem that there were any complicated ceremonies.
It was told that the champions had said something along the lines of, "The methods don't really matter. The important thing is to not forget the importance of life and love, isn't it?"
What a frank goddess. The simplicity and lack of formality is nice, but from the believers' point of view, isn't there a lack of blessings…?
Didn't religions normally have strict ceremonies and methods? Well, it likely wouldn't have been a problem a hundred thousand years ago when Vida walked safely in this world and could speak to her believers directly.
Incidentally, the other gods were apparently mostly the same. But in Shizarion's case, songs and art were offered to him while sword dances and the heads of prey hunted by warriors were offered as tributes to Zantark. In Ricklent's case, year-long research results were presented before his statue. It seemed that each god had their own preferences.
"As you would expect, Holy Son, Alda and the gods who support him seem to enjoy ceremonies with confusing, complicated procedures," said Nuaza.
There were apparently many rules such as the baptism of newborn infants, long prayers and obligations to go on pilgrimages. This was closer to Vandalieu's image of a religion.
It was unknown as to whether this was a result of Alda's personality, or because his clergymen had come up with these formal ceremonies to keep his believers together now that Alda, like Vida, could no longer walk on this world's surface.
"But considering that, why does Vida not pay me any attention?" Vandalieu wondered.
Since she had given the prophecy to Nuaza almost a hundred years ago, she should have predicted Vandalieu's existence back then.
With that being the case, Vandalieu thought that she could have at least sent him a Divine Message or something. "How to repair the resurrection device in five minutes," or the locations of other resurrection devices, perhaps.
"Holy Son, the goddess was gravely wounded in her battle against Alda," Nuaza told him. "She cannot send Divine Messages so frequently… At least, that is what I have been taught."
Vida sustained great wounds during the battle of a hundred thousand years ago, and apparently Zakkart and the Pure-breed Vampires were also in a deep slumber. Vida's subordinate gods were in a state where they were completely unable to act as well.
Vida's new races had been growing smaller in number due to Alda's influence, leaving her with few believers. This was just what Nuaza had heard from scholars from the Orbaume Kingdom who had visited Talosheim for research purposes, however.
And apparently talent was also needed in order to receive a Divine Message. With no talent, one would only receive a part of the Divine Message or it would not remain in the recipient's memories at all.
For example, if a god sent a Divine Message of, "The man named A is connected to the evil gods, so he is dangerous," if the recipient was not talented enough, the only thing he would remember would be, "A, danger." And then the situation would be complicated as it would be unknown as to whether A was a dangerous person or whether danger was closing in on A.
"Well, it might just be that there isn't anything she could tell me through a Divine Message," Vandalieu concluded.
It was possible that Vida thought that even if she told Vandalieu how to repair the resurrection device or the locations of other resurrection devices through a divine message, he wouldn't remember any of it.
"But you should be able to acquire the goddess's divine protection one day, Holy Son," said Nuaza.
"That would certainly make me feel a lot better," Vandalieu whispered as he looked up at the cold winter sunlight.
Spring was close.
Soldiers, knights, adventurers. If one were to ask which would win in one-on-one fights disregarding race and sex differences, the answer would be adventurers.
It was the jobs of the soldiers to protect the public order of their nations, fight on the battlefield during times of war and risk their lives to protect the towns when large groups of monsters went on rampages.
With the guards of Evbejia who only borrowed armor and helmet for bragging rights, soldiers who were not temporary conscripts but formally employed by the army first underwent a Job-change from Apprentice Soldier to Soldier.
These Jobs were more or less inferior equivalents to the Apprentice Warrior and Warrior Jobs. The only aspects in which they were superior was their ease of leveling and the bonuses to the acquisition of the Coordination and Enhanced Attribute Values: Under Command skills. However, these skills were meaningless when used alone.
The reason that Soldier was an inferior equivalent to Warrior was because soldiers, unlike adventurers, didn't fight frequently. Even if they did uphold the public order, they didn't fight life-threatening battles against criminals every day, and if a town were in a situation where monster rampages occurred multiple times a year, their lives would likely come to an end anyway.
Even if one included the skirmishes between the Amid Empire and the Orbaume Kingdom that had been ongoing since their foundation, wars only happened once every few years.
They trained every day without fail, but they had much less experience in real battles compared to adventurers. That was why the Soldier Job was inferior, but easier to level up.
As knights were expected to possess greater fighting strength than soldiers, their Jobs were more powerful than the Soldier Job.
They would begin with Apprentice Knight, then proceed to Equestrian. Once they were knighted, they would become True Knights. However, not just anyone could become a True Knight. Talent was indeed required, but no matter how skilled one was, being hired would be impossible without the trust of a noble family.
Knights were also a main source of public order, but depending on the individual, they could also be lords of small regions such as villages. As such, they spent more time doing desk work than soldiers, and they were more often injured during training than in real battle.
The average regular soldier would be considered E-class by the Adventurers' Guild, and Equestrians would be similar to them. True Knights were said to be equivalent to above-average D-class adventurers.
Thomas Palpapek smiled as he recalled the above information. Anyone witnessing this smile would certainly feel good will coming from him; it was a gentle smile that would leave a deep impression.
I'm quite good at keeping up appearances, though I do say so myself.
On the inside, he wanted to vomit and scowl fiercely, as if he had swallowed a swarm of bitter bugs.
It was still a season where sunrises and evenings were cold, but as Thomas looked upon the army that the warm spring sunlight was shining upon, he realized that his meager plan had half-succeeded and half-failed catastrophically.
This was Mirg, the Mirg shield-nation's royal capital. A departure ceremony for the expedition army was taking place here.
The Mirg shield-nation would address the expedition army and the Amid Empire's supreme commander, General Mauvid, would promise military success. Chezare was second-in command. He was the second son of the Legston, the current marshal. Mauvid and Chezare would receive blessings from the high priests of Alda, march around in a parade and then depart.
The proud face of General Mauvid, the fresh smile of Chezare and the face of the Green Wind Spear Riley, who was being introduced by the king as the second coming of the hero, were most unpleasant.
But there is nothing I can do now.
General Mauvid had brought several dozen imperial guards from the Amid Empire. There were thirty or so priest-warriors, led by the renowned Vampire hunter, High Priest Gordan. And the rest of the army was six thousand of the Mirg shield-nation's prided elite.
They were elites even among soldiers, having undergone Job-changes from Soldier to Jobs such as Archer, Cavalryman and Heavy Soldier. If they were adventurers they would be D-class; they were capable of exterminating Rank 3 monsters alone and they showed even greater fighting strength when battling in groups.
The knights were all at least True Knights, and most of them had undergone Job-changes to Guard Knight, Holy Knight or Superior Knight. They would be equivalent to Class adventurers, and they possessed enough strength to be able to defeat Rank 5 monsters on their own.
They were normally held back as reserve troops, the Mirg shield-nation's trump card. They were the final line of defense to protect the nation when the Orbaume Kingdom conducted surprise attacks that soldiers standing by at forts couldn't deal with, or when large groups of monsters suddenly appeared and went on a rampage.
There were six thousand men here. They were joining an expedition in order to risk their lives in battles that would yield no benefits for the Mirg shield-nation.
Even a single one of their deaths would be a great loss. They were not men who could be lost in exchange for cleaning up a worthless stain on the Mirg shield-nation's history, nor could they be compared to the life of a single Dhampir.
Thomas Palpapek's plan had half-succeeded. As the A-class adventurer Riley and his self-made party were participating in the expedition, as well as the Vampire hunter, High Priest Gordan, the number of men participating in the expedition had been reduced to two-thirds of what had originally been planned.
However, in high spirits due to the hero's participation in the expedition, the king had said, "Our dignity as a military nation would be lost if we do not provide our elite forces," and dispatched six thousand of the nation's most elite troops.
"Oh my, what distinguished personnel we have gathered here, Earl Palpapek."
"You are absolutely correct, Viscount Balchesse," said Thomas in response to this comment.
Yes, you're damn right, Viscount Balchesse.
Saying the same words in his mind as with his mouth, though with a completely different tone, Thomas maintained his composure.
Viscount Balchesse hadn't done anything wrong. He would have been a fool to not extend his hand at the chance to make his own land prosper, and he wasn't knowledgeable when it came to conspiracies and military affairs. Other than his skills when it came to economics, he was an ordinary nobleman. In any case, he wasn't in a position to be directly involved in this expedition. The most he was doing was helping with the transport of goods.
"The expedition is great, but I hope that as many of the soldiers return safely as possible," said Balchesse.
It was most helpful that he wasn't a foolish nobleman. Helpful for Thomas's sanity in particular.
"Yes, they are important, capable people that this nation needs, after all," replied Thomas.
They were the nation's elite. If they were regular soldiers, they could be replaced by training new recruits for a year. But there was no telling how many years of training it would take for new recruits to become replacements for such elite personnel, and even if they trained, many would not make it that far.
This was even more true for knights.
We will have three thousand elite soldiers left in reserve. There are no signs of monster rampages, and the Orbaume Kingdom shouldn't have regained enough strength to go on another offensive. And there should be no way for them to be able to tell what is happening on the other side of the Boundary Mountain Range.
Things would likely work out during the expedition. That was what Thomas predicted.
The only thing I can do now is pray that the Dhampir is exterminated as quickly as possible and that as many of our soldiers as possible return before the Vampires destroy the tunnel.
"But it would have been more reassuring if the Thunderclap Schneider was participating in the expedition as well," Balchesse commented.
"Ah, that S-class adventurer?"
Of course, Thomas was aware of this person. Unlike Riley who had been artificially raised to his current position, he was a true hero, and he had visited the Mirg shield-nation on several occasions. He hunted Dragons whose Ranks were higher than 10 as if it were nothing, and Noble-born Vampires were nothing but small-fry before him. He was a superhuman who had defeated an evil god and annihilated numerous packs of Lamias and Scylla… A truly inhuman being.
He was one of the five strongest individuals in the Amid Empire, a hero. It was even said that Alda had sent Divine Messages more than once or twice in order to warn of his life being in danger.
"If he didn't have bad habits as well…" Balchesse muttered.
Schneider had an unrivaled lust for women.
"It is unfortunate," Thomas agreed. "But they do say that heroes like their women."
It doesn't matter if the goddess loves him! Anyone who would be infatuated with womanizing in a time like this should just die!
Though the words that came out of his mouth were civil, Thomas cursed Schneider in his mind.
Parallel Thought Processing was a skill that allowed different matters to be thought about simultaneously. It was likely that it provided Vandalieu with the same ability as dividing his heads.
After trying to use it, he had found that he was able to think about different things as if he had grown an additional brain. He would be able to use thought process A to solve mathematics problems while thought process B controlled his body in a boxing match.
The number of thought processes wasn't limited by the level of the skill; he was able to have three or four at once. But the more the number increased, the more likely the thought processes were to fail when performing complicated tasks. As the level of the skill increased, it was likely that he would be able to perform more numerous, complicated tasks at once.
Incidentally, when Vandalieu used Out-of-body Experience to multiply his heads, his extra heads could also use Parallel Thought Processing.
"High-power as usual," Zadiris commented. "Combined with the Chant Revocation skill, can you not cast multiple spells at once?"
"I can," said Vandalieu. "If I use Multi-Cast as well, I can cast currently six spells with one head."
Even with the Parallel Though Processing skill to increase the number of Vandalieu's thought processes, he only had one mouth so he would normally be able to cast only one spell. However, with the Chant Revocation spell, there was no need to recite an incantation so casting multiple spells simultaneously was possible.
The Multi-Cast skill only added to that.
And he could cast even more with the use of the Surpass Limits skill.
"Would your Mana not decrease if you do that?" asked Tarea.
"Not particularly, though it is tiring," replied Vandalieu.
Was it not likely consuming a large amount of the glucose in his body? For Vandalieu, who possessed a vast amount of Mana, he wouldn't be particularly happy if his body's nutrients were the price to pay for using his skills, but if he used Out-of-body Experience and used only his soul rather than his body to use his skills, there would be no problem.
As for what Vandalieu was doing right now, he was playing shogi with Zadiris and Tarea as his opponents.
"Despite seeming simple at first, it is quite a strategically deep game," Zadiris remarked.
"It seems like it would be quite enjoyable if one gets used to it," said Tarea.
Reversi had already become widespread, so Vandalieu had created a board and pieces for shogi out of stone as another way for those in Talosheim to entertain themselves.
He had considered chess as well, but since Japanese was spoken in this world, shogi seemed more appropriate. Additionally, it seemed likely that everyone would soon become familiar with shogi, as currently-existing board games were far more complicated and difficult.
And most importantly, Vandalieu himself was not very familiar with chess. He did remember the shapes of the pieces, how they moved and the basic rules of the game, however.
But it was something that he had been forced to play for intelligence tests in Origin, so his knowledge of the game might have been different from the rules of the chess of Earth… there were pieces called mages in the game he knew, too.
Vandalieu was processing the board states of two games at once, and each of his hands moved a different piece on each board with clacking noises. He was spending his time leisurely after having cleared a Dungeon, but it was also training for his Parallel Thought Processing.
"Come to think of it, how was the virus you created?" asked Zadiris.
Clack.
"It went well," Vandalieu replied. "It only manifested symptoms in the dinosaurs and Goblins that everyone worked together to capture alive."
Click, clack.
"Then once you create a number of Magic Items imbued with Sterilization, everything will be perfect, won't they?" said Tarea.
Cli-clack.
And then Vandalieu could see that it would be difficult for him to move and advance his pieces.
"I've been defeated," he said, exhaling quietly. "Also, it's a rule that you have to declare when you are putting your opponent in check."
"Boy…" Zadiris looked up at him. "It is fine for you to be more frustrated when you lose, you know?"
"Zadiris, I've already lost ten times in a row. I don't have any pride left."
Like Reversi, Vandalieu had never played shogi with someone on Earth. His only experience with shogi had been in video games and playing by himself.
Therefore, like in Reversi, he had become unable to defeat the rapidly-improving Zadiris, and though he had won against Tarea three times, he had been losing continuously after that.
Tarea gave a small laugh. "Well then, please go ahead."
"Well, it is a competition after all," said Zadiris.
There were rules in place where the loser of matches had to give massages to the winner. And though Vandalieu wasn't aware of this, the skill of giving others massages was not widespread in Lambda. Naturally, the concept of acupuncture points didn't exist.
The wealthy and those who made use of high-class brothels knew of massages as anma*, but they had no concepts of using acupuncture points, seitai, needles and moxibustion.
Thus, the massage Golems that Vandalieu had placed in the bathhouses were plainly great inventions.
"Well then, I'll get started," said Vandalieu.
He used Spirit Form Transformation on his arms, branched them out into tentacle-like shapes and they sank into Zadiris and Tarea's bodies. From the inside, he released their muscle tension while using Materialization to massage them from the outside.
The Materialization skill he had gained when acquiring the Soul Breaker Job, to put it simply, was a skill that allowed him to materialize parts of his body that had undergone Spirit Form Transformation.
It might seem that taking the effort to use Spirit Form Transformation only to materialize the body parts again would be meaningless, but Vandalieu had intuitively sensed that it would be an extremely useful skill… though not because he thought that he would be able to do tentacle play.
Tarea called out to Vandalieu. "Van-sama, you have become distracted."
"Ah, sorry."
It seemed that concentrating on three different things with Parallel Thought Processing caused his focus to slip sometimes and produce negative effects on what he was doing.
"Boy, you are so enthusiastic when it comes to Basdia and the others, but not taking things seriously for us… how shocking," said Zadiris.
"It seems that he does indeed prefer the younger women," Tarea lamented.
"No, both of you are young," Vandalieu pointed out.
Though both of their ages were three hundred years if rounded up, now that they had undergone Youth Transformation, their bodies had reverted to being very close to their physical age. When Vandalieu looked closely at them as they made their lamentations, he could see slight smiles on their faces.
It seemed that they were aware of this.
"… Come to think of it, it's been about three years since I used Youth Transformation on Zadiris, and about a year for Tarea."
Vandalieu increased the number of his arms.
"Wait, what are you planning to do with so many arms?!" Zadiris demanded.
"I was thinking I should do a little something to turn you into young women," replied Vandalieu.
"Th-th-that is unnecessary!" Tarea said hastily. "We are no longer tired, so you can end the massage here!"
As Zadiris and Tarea's faces turned pale with panic, Vandalieu refused to allow them to escape and began using Youth Transformation.
"No, no, you don't need to be so reserved," he insisted.
"Sto - AAAAAAH~!"
"NOOOO! There are more of them than before, HYAAAH!"
Vandalieu was bothered by the fact that he had lost the shogi matches, so he used Youth Transformation on Zadiris and Tarea until their skin was as smooth and childish as a baby's.
『The levels of the Parallel Thought Processing and Materialization skills have increased!』
『You have acquired the High-speed Thought Processing skill!』
Name: Bone Man
Rank: 6
Race: Skeleton Viscount
Level: 67
Passive skills:
Dark Vision
Superhuman Strength: Level 4 (LEVEL UP!)
Enhanced Attribute Values: Loyalty: Level 4 (LEVEL UP!)
Spirit Form: Level 3 (LEVEL UP!)
Active skills:
Swordsmanship: Level 5 (LEVEL UP!)
Shield Technique: Level 4 (LEVEL UP!)
Archery: Level 4 (LEVEL UP!)
Silent Steps: Level 2 (LEVEL UP!)
Coordination: Level 3 (LEVEL UP!)
Commanding: Level 1
Armor Technique: Level 3 (NEW!)
Mount: Level 1 (NEW!)
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