Blood splattered all around the rundown room as heads popped up one after the other. It wasn’t my intention to kill this pathetic squadron, but I couldn’t resist myself after one of these miscreants had drawn out my blood. 

I slashed my wrist with the incoming blade as I deftly moved to my body and used [Blood Forge] to instantly harden the oozing blood. With a gleaming blade on my wrist, I dropped another head, and it tumbled to Darkl’s feet, his eyes filled with terror and face marred with the blood of some unknown mortal. The stench of blood took away the sanity of the remaining mortals, the cold breeze of the night not enough to drive out the fear lingering in the room. Screams resounded, some of the pain, others of terror, yet there was no adrenaline in my veins.

I winked at Darkl before using [First Step] and stabbing the last man standing before he could cower and run out of the inn. 

“You see,” I kicked a random head toward the mercenaries, and the severed neck hit Darkl’s arm, splashing more fresh blood on his cloak, “this is what I do. So, if you think you can handle this, please be my guest. Else, scram with your company before I get excited.”

Not one more word was spoken, and the inn became empty. 

The blood seeped into the wooden floor, darkening it. Most of the upturned tables were broken, and a bloodied cutlass was lodged in a wall at the far end. In the innkeeper’s cubicle, a headless body lay sprawled, the limbs twisted at unnatural angles. Once a ramshackle abode, the small inn was reduced to a chamber of horror. Every corner was a testament to what happened when you provoked one undead.

I watched the gruesome floor littered with lifeless bodies, the scene evoking neither joy nor misery. I would have marveled at the beauty a few years ago, but now, it appeared rather… normal.

“What is this mess, Rudolf?” Letitia looked at me from the stairs and shook her head. “And here I thought we had a friendly company.”

Letitia tiptoed around the areas without any blood and reached close to me. With the sleeves of her nightgown, she wiped my face, her finger caressing my face as she pulled me away from the gore. 

“Does it hurt?” she asked, running her finger over the stab wound on my stomach.

I laughed and cast [Heal].

“You should be more worried about them, Letitia,” I said. “Some poor mortals down on their luck. It's been a while since I last slaughtered some, so I’m feeling indifferent. Perhaps I’m getting soft.”

She giggled and ruffled my hair. “Soft? More like I’m the only one who can make you happy now.”

I stared at her face for a while. “Yeah,” I shrugged. “And bread.”

Letitia looked away from me, ears turning a shade darker. “Where’s your bread lad?”

The kitchen door opened at the same time, Garlan covering his nose at the sharp stench. 

“And who is going to clean this mess?” he asked, carefully scrutinizing the bodies. “You should just freeze all the blood. It'll be easier to throw it out.”

“It's all right,” Karla said, standing by the entrance. I hadn't sensed her presence. “Cleaning this room is not a problem. In return for getting rid of actual trash. I couldn't kill them all on my own, so this is good.”

Letitia exchanged glances with me, and I shook my head. I had no idea, either.

“Dine in the kitchen,” Karla materialized a ball of water in her hands, “while I finish this. Will burn the bodies, so don’t stray too far from the rooms.” She pointed at Letitia, “You, noble lady.”

“No one points at me, Karla,” Letitia scoffed and moved toward the kitchen, freezing the floor before her. The blood flowed underneath the frozen moisture, undisturbed.

Karla looked at Letitia and then at me, her gaze confused. Perhaps the lack of mana in Letitia’s body had given the innkeeper a wrong impression.

“Her conduits have recovered,” I shrugged, catching up with Letitia. 

The dinner was laid out on the table, a feast of roasted meat and skewered vegetables, their aromas wiping out the stench of blood. Garlan closed the door behind us, shoving me toward the sink. I washed my hands and took off my tunic, attracting Letitia’s stare. She looked away from me when I glanced in her direction and focused on stuffing the bread in her mouth. Not like I minded her stare. I tossed the bloodied tunic into the hearth and sat beside Letitia. 

“Just like that?” she asked. “Your bread lad might ogle at you.”

“Please, Letitia,” Garlan rolled his eyes. “Don’t lump me with you. There’s literally nothing on him. Even if I was into men,” he gave me a repulsive glance, “those skin and bones aren’t worth looking at. But my tummy might be enticing to many. Heck, to all! Maybe I should eat more.”

Letitia shook her head in dismay and pulled my chair closer to her.

“Bread lad,” Garlan started amidst our peaceful dinner. “Why do you want to send scouts to the border? If you are worried about Letitia, just kill them all and take her home. Why bother going through so much trouble?”

Letitia’s stare warranted an answer. 

“Well,” I scratched my neck, my gaze on the crackling fire, “she isn’t an ornament.”

“Of course, I know that,” Garlan shook his head. “The fuck is that answer?!”

Letitia focused on her meal and continued eating silently. I didn’t miss the smile on her lips. 

She would never learn [Undead] if cooping up in the room was all she did. 

Then again, you see, I want her to see the world, to experience it on her own, to see the mountains and grasslands beyond, to witness the raw reality of war and the plight of those who suffer, to kill a few enemies and show the world she is a force to be reckoned with. Even if her time is brief, I want her life to be filled with her adventures, not the vicarious thrills of mine. There is nothing good about being tethered to a benign being, watching his schemes and manipulations. This is merely a fleeting moment of my inevitable immortality, but her entirety.

Had I changed? Maybe. But my purpose had definitely changed. Now, I just wanted to see her happy, even if she didn’t end up becoming the villainess I had envisaged her to be. 

Letitia held my hand when we reached the room and pecked my cheeks. “The sweetest man alive.”

“You have been brainwashed, Letitia,” I rubbed her head and moved toward my duffel bag for a change of clothes. 

She hugged me from behind, running her hands over my chest. I felt the heat of her cheeks on my back and decided not to turn around. “Don’t undermine yourself,” she murmured. “You deserve the best of all worlds!”

I flipped her over my shoulders with [Weightless] and cradled her in my arms. She gasped in surprise, her cheeks a shade darker, before she broke into laughter, her sound bright and infectious. “That scared me.” 

“You won’t fall as long as I am here, Letitia,” I said, placing her on the bead. She hugged my neck, holding me close.

“For eternity?” she whispered in my ear. 

“For eternity,” I chuckled. “Now, can I go clean up?”

–

We packed bags and fed our horses the following morning before continuing to Kalith. We didn’t exchange many words with the innkeeper, but she was grateful for getting rid of Sleghogs, that much even this undead could tell. After a few specific warnings and some tips to lose weight, the innkeeper bid us goodbye. Garlan just scoffed and rode away with his horse, ignoring the amused Karla.

“Rudolf,” the innkeeper stopped me as I moved out of the rundown gates. “There are multiple sealing scriptures erected around Arlikia. I was a sage once before our Yewalk disbanded us. Now, there are those who don't follow the commandments, an embarrassment to Yewalk’s ways. They have adhered themselves to the Yvenaught faction, perhaps drawn to the force that keeps them together. I have been with Yewalk long enough to know that he is not mortal. Strangely, you have the same bearing as Yewalk. If the sealing scriptures are meant to seal him, it means the rogue sages are trying to wipe him out for good.” She paused and continued with a sigh, “You should be careful too. ”

“I appreciate the warning, Karla,” I said. “But your Yewalk or whatever is just a baby. A few thousand years too early for you to make the comparison.”

And, here we go. The world was getting ready to kick my ass as a side quest. Sealing encryptions along with a holy attribute mage is the perfect way to get rid of undead if you don’t have enough money to buy bread. Seal them in the demon realm and let them rot there for eternity or until they are summoned elsewhere. Transmigration? I don’t know. I've never been to the demon realm to try it out. Even this undead is ignorant of some things. 

My horse trotted behind my mortal companions. They were quibbling over some menial things, and I joined them with a grin. The impending doom had to wait. We passed Darkl’s company on our way, their camp too eye-catching just to ignore. They had set up monochrome faded tents, their damped color standing out against the contrasting greenery. Smoke from several cooking fires wafted lazily into the air, mingling with the scent of burning wood and roasted meat. Garlan, diplomatic as usual, greeted them briefly and exchanged a few words with the burly man, grabbing some meat in the meantime. The tension was palpable as they glanced in my direction, but Letitia stood before me, her gaze unfriendlier than the mercenary counterpart.

The road ahead beckoned us as trees on either side of the winding path offered shade while the camp faded into the distance. The air was fresh, filled with the earthy scent of damp soil and wildflowers that bloomed under the shifting shadows of the canopies. The path was well-trodden but narrow for our horses to move side, so our horses trotted one behind the other, the soft soil masking the hooves. The serene ambiance of the rustling leaves was interrupted by the groaning of a trader's cartwheel in the distance, the murmurs disturbing our silent journey.

He was on his way to Coln like us, albeit to make some money by selling the grains. The two horses pulling the cart appeared exhausted, like the few guards riding with the man, but there was grit on the trader’s face, different from the ferocity of the miscreants I had wiped out.

“No one goes there anymore,” the gruff man said, patting at the sack of grains on the cart behind him. There were guards around, untrained, or so their blunt swords said. “I don’t yearn for noble cause. Just want to make some shins off others' misery. Isn’t that what everyone does? The hard labor of some is eaten by those who don’t do any labor. Honest living isn’t my thing. As long as my grains sell reasonably, I care little about what happens to Coln.”

“Hope your grain won’t go down the drain,” Garlan grinned. “Thieves aren’t uncommon around the parts, and those wet rags look like they can be squeezed by any random hobo. If earning shins is your goal, you better spend some more shins on hiring a better mercenary company. There’s a camp behind, less than an hourglass if your weary horses don’t drop dead. They might be happy to help you with a few shins.”

 The trader looked at Garlan and Letitia before his gaze moved to me. “Never seen travelers helping a traitor. You trying to rob me blind?”

I laughed. “We don’t need others to rob you. He just wants to make sure there are enough grains in Coln. Can’t fight on a hungry stomach now, can we?”

We didn’t entertain the trader anymore and rode till evenfall. In the distance, the spires and rooftops of Kalith were just visible, promising the end of the first segment of our journey and the bustle of town life. The trader hadn’t followed our treacherous path and decided to take the path through the plains, perhaps with Darkl’s company. 

Spending the night at Kalith meant we had to trudge through the mountain valley tomorrow. Not an enticing part of the tour, of course.