[How is it, Lord Commander? Isn’t it perfect?]
Erzebet proudly presented her creation. Lying on the hospital bed under the covers was a doll that looked exactly like Simon, woven from spiderwebs.
"...Hmm."
Simon rubbed the bridge of his nose, a queasy feeling in his stomach.
"It’s unpleasantly realistic."
[Indeed! I hug and cuddle it every day, so its realism is guaranteed.]
"...Please, Erze."
Later that night, leaving the decoy behind, Simon and Erzebet arrived at Pier’s ruins.
[You have arrived, Young Master!]
Akemus, who was waiting at the entrance, greeted them with a deep bow. His frame was so large he looked like a bear bending at the waist.
[I am relieved to see you are safe! Are you well?]
"Yes, I’m fine now. You did well too, Akemus..."
’Wait.’ An idea struck him. This was a perfect chance to score some points with Akemus. Simple praise was too cliché.
"You were the only Ancient Undead to capture a ‘Bishop’ alive in the last battle."
[!]
Akemus’s eyes widened.
Simon continued with a smile, "You did that with my and the legion’s circumstances in mind, didn’t you? Thank you."
Akemus’s shoulders trembled with emotion.
[I was merely doing my duty, Young Master!]
It was working. Simon bit his thumb, feigning anxiety.
"But I have nothing with which to repay your loyalty..."
’Gush!’
The sound of Akemus’s tears was unmistakable. He prostrated himself on the floor, wailing.
[Loyalty is not given in expectation of a reward! Simply by reigning as my lord, I will fight with all my body and soul! Young Master!!]
[Out of the way.]
With a look of utter disdain, Erzebet snagged Akemus with a spiderweb and flung him into the distance.
[Sob! Young Masteeeer!!]
Leaving Akemus’s echoing cries behind, Simon entered the ruins.
[Oh, it’s Simon!]
Prince’s head shot up. Pier also raised a hand in greeting.
[Simon! Simon! That staff woman from before was incredible!] Prince exclaimed, throwing punches in the air. [I never thought she could summon us across dimensions! I was just spacing out when I was suddenly pulled in. It really caught me by surprise!]
Simon nodded. Without a doubt, the greatest contributor to the battle had been the legion-ized Herseva. She had not only summoned her own mummies but had also brought three Ancient Undead to the field, completely turning the tide.
"That’s exactly the problem," Simon said, taking Herseva out of his subspace and placing her on the altar. "Her consciousness hasn’t returned yet."
In this battle, she had pushed herself far beyond her limits, even more so than when she used the ‘World of Sand’ against Serne.
[First, we need to examine the main body, boy!] Pier declared, approaching the altar.
"Right."
Simon retrieved Herseva’s main body from his bracelet subspace. The Lifevessel was beating steadily, but her Jet-Black reserves were nearly depleted and not recovering. Her consciousness remained dormant.
’Recovery first.’
After assessing her condition, Simon turned to the others.
"Everyone, I need your help."
With Simon at the center, Pier, Erzebet, Prince, and Akemus formed a circle, extending their palms toward the lich’s Lifevessel. Their thoughts were connected, so no further explanation was needed.
"Let’s begin."
From their five palms, dark blue Jet-Black flowed out, slowly replenishing Herseva’s Lifevessel. The energy, which had been precariously low, began to rise little by little.
[Oh! Her capacity for Jet-Black is bigger than I thought,] Prince muttered. It was likely a change that had occurred when she awakened as a legion-type undead. Even with four Ancient Undead supplying energy, it didn’t fill up quickly.
[Boy!] Pier called out, observing the process. [Leave the Jet-Black supply to us. You should focus on repairing the magic circle’s circuits. There might be broken or loose connections!]
"Good idea."
They immediately divided the tasks. Simon examined the Lifevessel’s magic circle. The runes and core formulas were intact, but just as the experienced Pier had suggested, he found several loose circuits.
’The circuits must have changed when she evolved from a summoning-type to a legion-type undead.’
He reconnected the loose parts and realigned the crossed circuits. With each repair, the Lifevessel began to glow brighter. Soon, its three bands whirred back to life, pumping Jet-Black throughout her body and supplying the summoning magic circle in her skull.
The staff on the altar began to float. The eye attached to its tip snapped open.
[Huh? Huh?]
Herseva was finally awake.
[I’m still here? I thought for sure I was a goner!]
"I told you," Simon said, managing a smile despite being out of breath. "I would never lose you."
He thought it was a rather touching moment.
[Dieee!]
Herseva began bonking Simon on the head in mid-air. He shielded himself and backed away.
"Wh-What was that for?"
[You dare make me suffer like that?! You’re a true necromancer, working me to death just to win!]
Pier and Prince chuckled at the scene, but Erzebet’s clenched fists were trembling.
[How dare a fledgling lich get to have skinship with him before me!]
[Does getting beaten up count as skinship?] Prince asked, his eyes wide.
[Indeed it does, Prince. That kind of play might be the ultimate form of—]
[I have no desire to know about your strange tastes, Erzebet,] Akemus cut in flatly.
Having exhausted her energy beating Simon, Herseva was now panting. Simon plopped down on the altar and clapped his hands to get their attention.
"Alright, could I have your attention for a moment? As your commander, I have an announcement."
[Hm?]
All eyes turned to him.
"As Erzebet said, Herseva is still young and not an Ancient Undead, but I believe her power and capabilities are beyond dispute."
Akemus nodded.
[Her ability to summon all of us into the dungeon was truly remarkable, Young Master.]
[And she has a mummy corps,] Prince added.
"Yes," Simon said, gesturing toward Herseva with an open palm. "So, I would like to treat the now legion-ized Herseva as your equal, as the ‘Captain’ of the Mummy Corps. Is that acceptable?"
Pier let out a booming laugh.
[Khahaha! She is more than worthy of it!]
Erzebet placed a hand on her forehead.
[Ugh, she has no manners, but even I must acknowledge her abilities.]
Prince and Akemus voiced their agreement. Soon, all the Ancient Undead assumed a formal posture.
[Under the commander’s permission, in my name as the administrator, Pier, I shall elevate the status of the dead!]
’Wooooong!’
Herseva’s main body was enveloped in a radiant light. Pier was releasing her restrictions as a legion-type undead, granting her the authority of a captain capable of autonomous action.
Herseva looked stunned. A swirl of emotions flickered in the eye on her staff.
"I’m counting on you, Herseva," Simon said with a smile. This time, he was sure it was a touching moment.
[Did you think giving me a title would save you from a beating!]
Herseva flew over and repeatedly bonked him on the head. Laughter, both loud and soft, filled the ruins.
Thus, a new and powerful pillar was established in the legion. It was a significant milestone, for this new ‘Captain’ was a being forged by Simon’s own power, not an inheritance from his father.
It was the next morning.
Back in his hospital room, Simon was once again experimenting with combining Jet-Black and divinity to create Void.
’Boooom!’
Another failure.
Jet-Black and divinity refused to mix, like oil and water. They would either scatter, be purified by the divinity, or explode on contact.
’This is hard,’ Simon thought, flopping onto the bed. ’No, it’s more than hard. It feels utterly impossible.’
What made him most anxious was that the physical sensation of creating Void was gradually fading.
’Back then, I just had to mix them together with a swoosh.’
Of course, that had only been possible because he had just met ‘that being.’ The very idea that he could replicate it with muscle memory alone, without any knowledge of the underlying theory, was probably arrogant.
"Then let’s try a different approach!"
Simon shot up and held out his right hand. He drew a small magic circle at his fingertips, then drew out blood and Jet-Black. Mixing them in a 6:4 ratio, he passed the concoction through the magic circle, producing a brilliant emerald smoke.
‘Cloud’
He felt a little uneasy using the technique Silage had taught him, especially after what had happened. But in the end, it was a power he had honed, an asset that was his own. There was no need to seal it away.
"Alright! Now, into this Cloud..."
Maintaining the Cloud in his right hand, he held out his left palm.
"If I create divinity and collide them!"
’Gurgle!’
This time, it didn’t explode. Instead, the Cloud and divinity merged into a strange, swirling vortex. Like a serpent chasing its own tail, the two forces spun around each other in a frantic dance.
"What’s happening?"
He quickly poked the badge-shaped clone of Pier in the corner.
"Pier! Pier! Take a look at this!"
[Hm? What is it, boy?]
Simon picked up the clone and held it up for a better view. Pier’s clone frowned.
[Mwahaha! What is this bizarre thing!]
"This happened when I mixed Cloud and divinity!"
The spinning energy eventually popped and dissipated. Fortunately, Parahan’s noise-canceling magic circle smothered the sound.
"One more time...!"
He created the mixture again, and once more, the spinning top of energy formed.
[Hmm, I see!]
"Did you figure something out?"
[Open your eyes wide and look carefully, boy,] Pier said in a serious tone. [The Cloud is breaking down. When divinity stimulates it, the Jet-Black within is pushed to the edges to avoid it. Look, the edge of the Cloud is stained black!]
"Ah...!"
He hadn’t noticed because of the rapid spinning, but Pier was right. The edge of the Cloud was tinged with black. It started as a combination of divinity and Cloud, but over time, it separated into three components: divinity on the left, Simon’s ‘SM-1’ blood in the middle, and Jet-Black on the right. The divinity tried to purify its opposite, but the barrier of blood in the middle blocked it, causing the vortex. The moment that barrier thinned and the two forces collided...
’Bang!’
It exploded.
"This is fascinating!" Simon shouted, his face alight with excitement. "Couldn’t we use it just like this?"
[Mwahaha! I wonder. I’m not sure about its practical uses.]
"With this, I might be able to inflict both Jet-Black and divine damage on an enemy at the same time!"
Lost in his new discovery, Simon barely heard Pier. He created the spinning energy again and tried to float it in the air.
Suddenly, it shot out of his control. The top-like vortex zipped around the room in an unpredictable trajectory before flying out the window and slamming into a nearby tree. The impact shattered the SM-1 barrier, allowing the divinity to penetrate the Jet-Black.
’Bang!’
An explosion rocked the tree, sending a shower of leaves raining down.
"See, Pier! It was unexpected, but this could be valuable in a real fight...!"
"WHO WAS THAT?!"
Simon quickly ducked. Through the window, he could see an enraged dorm manager with a beet-red face storming toward the building. He peeked outside, then scratched his cheek in embarrassment.
"I-It seems it needs a little improvement before it’s ready for combat..." he muttered.
Pier laughed loudly. The way the boy, normally so composed, lost his mind over a new discovery was just like Richard.
[It will need a lot of improvement, not just a little. But this seems a far cry from that ‘Void’ you used!]
"Yes. It’s certainly nothing like the power of the Void. Still..."
It was a completely new, original technique, born from the idea of the Void.
"It’s still in the prototype stage, but if I were to give it a name..."
A power that was neither Jet-Black nor divinity. He pictured the chaotic swirl of Jet-Black, blood, and divinity in his mind.
"How about ‘Chaos’?"

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