“The noblest elf, you say. Could he be an ancestor of Isidore’s?”
‘Wouldn’t he be? The caliber of his soul must have been high as well. His body wasn’t warped in the slightest.’
“Even such a being was ultimately consumed and ended up like this, then. Well, even a dragon couldn’t endure it, so what could the noblest elf have done?”
A small plaza shrouded in silence.
All around it stood gray statues.
The things that had been alive just a short while ago had now turned to stone and merely stood frozen in place.
At the center of that plaza, Hio quietly looked down at the elf’s body, now bereft of its soul.
With all the abyssal energy gone and only an empty shell remaining, its appearance was close enough that, aside from the color of its hair, one could believe it was Isidore’s twin.
‘He was far stronger than Isidore. Was it because he was tainted by the Abyss, or was this his original ability?’
“His original ability must have been the foundation. That energy would have strengthened him as well. However, since he lost that much of his intellect, one could say he was actually weakened.”
The noblest elf had been strong.
The statues scattered around them and the fact that the heavily guarded academy had been breached were proof of that.
Thinking of it the other way around, just what was the Abyss, that it could corrupt even an elf as powerful and noble as this?
He stood there for a long while with such thoughts in mind.
“Um…… you haven’t forgotten me, have you?”
At the sudden voice, he came back to his senses.
“Ah, right.”
Silvert was still there, wasn’t he?
When he turned his head, Silvert was there, surrounded by dying plants, his face twisted in displeasure.
His expression was crumpled to the fullest, as if he had never imagined Hio would truly forget about him.
“No, seriously, even so…… Sigh, forget it. More importantly, do you think you can undo this?”
Between the vines that were slowly falling away, hard gray stone was revealed.
It was none other than Silvert’s body.
“A kind of mental attack, huh…….”
That was why it had not worked on Hio.
When it came to mental attacks, he possessed a high barrier against them.
“Wait a moment.”
Leaving Silvert frozen with only his face exposed, Hio turned around.
Common sense said that if a person’s body turned to stone, they could not be alive.
That was what he thought, but Silvert was alive.
Even after quite a long time had passed.
So Hio looked around at the countless statues surrounding the plaza and activated his trait.
「Trait—‘Ghost’s Eye’ has been activated.」
And the statues he saw through the Ghost’s Eye were—
“They’re…… still alive.”
Their souls were no different from those of living people.
However, that did not mean he could return them to their original state.
There was no method.
Even after going through all the magic he possessed, nothing appropriate came to mind, and the same was true of his skills.
If even “Celestial,” something akin to the highest-ranking divine magic, had not worked, would any other skill work?
“How about melting only the parts that turned to stone with Azure Flame?”
‘……You think that would work?’
“It wouldn’t, would it?”
Not only was the possibility low, but the risk was far too great.
If he made one wrong move and they melted completely, wouldn’t that be a disaster?
They were still alive, after all.
‘Among the remaining spells, let’s see…….’
The only thing that came to mind was a spell he had learned recently.
Fourth Circle Purification.
Since it was said to have begun as a mental attack, there seemed to be some possibility.
Of course, it was only a small possibility.
Although it was petrification that originated from a mental attack, they had ultimately turned to stone, had they not?
Considering that it had not disappeared even after the abyss-tainted elf, the caster, had died with his soul extinguished, Hio thought it would be difficult to resolve with a simple purification spell.
Then the remaining magic was……
‘Hm?’
One spell flashed through his mind.
‘Kreutzwald-style necromancy……?’
“Necromancy? You mean to do that?”
Hio’s gaze returned to the noblest elf, whose body had collapsed on the ground.
A body with its soul gone, leaving only a shell behind.
If Kreutzwald-style necromancy was possible with this……
Would that not mean the body and ability that had nearly destroyed the academy on its own could be combined with the abilities of another soul?
Thinking about it that way, he realized just how absurd that magic truly was……
He immediately understood why it had been hidden in such a difficult place to find.
“Hmm…… It’s too sudden, you see.”
Just as Purnell worried, it had merely flashed into his mind, and there was a major problem.
“Would that soul you are keeping be compatible with that noble body?”
The most important thing was compatibility, after all.
Everything else could be prepared.
The dark-attribute mana required to use Kreutzwald-style necromancy, and dead souls from which to extract it, for example.
But the most important thing was still compatibility.
Even if he prepared everything else, if the body and the prepared soul were not compatible, it would all be in vain.
‘What even is compatibility in the first place? How am I supposed to find out whether a soul and body match well?’
There had been no explanation regarding compatibility in the Book of Kreutzwald-style Necromancy either.
It had merely stated that, in the event of failure, the soul used was highly likely to be destroyed.
And Purnell’s answer to Hio’s question was—
“How would I know? If I knew that, I would have been Kreutzwald.”
As expected.
In truth, he had not expected much.
‘Compatibility…… Compatibility, huh…….’
Let’s think about it.
There was only one soul he could use for necromancy.
The Soul Harvester’s Lantern, one of Kreutzwald’s Three Sacred Treasures.
There was only one soul stored within it.
A soul that had met a futile end as a villain, and even after awakening the memories it had locked away itself, had somehow not left this world.
An unfortunate soul.
Airaitz.
‘I need to think about whether Airaitz’s soul and that noble elf’s body will match well.’
“As my personal opinion, I believe the appearance passes.”
The appearance passed.
He did not know whether looks were important for compatibility, but their height and physique seemed similar.
On top of that, both of them had possessed outstanding beauty.
Of course, there was a difference between Airaitz’s dazzling face and the elf’s graceful features……
‘Well, compatibility probably isn’t decided by appearance.’
Still, the fact that their physiques, such as their height, were similar should be fairly significant.
Then what remained was ability.
Airaitz’s ability was charm.
If she met the eyes of her target, she could cast the skill, and she could also cast charm through those who had already been charmed.
In other words, she could spread it like a contagion, and those under her charm obeyed only Airaitz’s commands.
The noblest elf’s representative abilities were twofold.
Controlling plants that absorbed mana.
And petrification.
According to Silvert, meeting eyes was the activation condition, and it began as a kind of mental attack.
Which meant.
‘This might be doable?’
There were quite a few similarities.
Similar physique. Similar abilities.
Well, if he had to add more, they were the same gender.
And…… beautiful looks?
……Honestly, he had no idea. He could not guarantee it.
He would only know after trying.
‘Appearance, and possessed abilities. What else could be related to compatibility?’
Did their personalities need to be similar too, perhaps?
If so, this was a complete wash.
“Think carefully. I know you pity that soul.”
‘……Pity, my ass.’
“Then why did you go out of your way to store only that soul separately in the lantern? You may fool a ghost, but you cannot fool me.”
‘What difference is there between a ghost and you?’
“…….”
Leaving Purnell speechless, Hio took the lantern out of his pocket.
A lantern from which a deep green glow seeped faintly.
The Soul Harvester’s Lantern, emanating ghostly energy.
When he lifted it to eye level and peered inside, he could see it.
A single soul, curled up tightly as it slept.
‘In any case, I have no choice but to try.’
There was no data.
So he could only know by trying.
“Be careful. It said that if you fail, the girl’s soul may be destroyed.”
‘That’s true.’
But that did not mean he could keep her stored away like this forever.
It was something he would have to attempt one day, and he had merely judged that moment to be now.
‘Let’s try it.’
He used the skill contained within the lantern.
「Soul Harvester’s Lantern—‘Soul Extraction’ has been used.」
Soul Extraction, used on dead souls that had departed the world and were ascending.
From within the soul, it selected and extracted only the purest darkness, and that soon converted into dark-attribute mana.
Far more viscous and dense than ordinary mana.
Mana with a sticky sensation.
“……Dark-attribute mana. So this is what it is.”
Dark-attribute mana extracted directly from souls—just how pure was it?
If this could be utilized, how much would the diversity of necromancy and black magic develop?
However, it was regrettable that the only extraction method was to use that lantern.
‘It means I should handle this the same way I handle mana.’
Dark-attribute mana extracted from dead souls steadily accumulated within his body.
Of course, because it was such a special kind of mana, it was one-use mana that would not regenerate afterward, but in any case, was it not still mana?
If it was a kind of mana, there was no reason Hio could not handle it.
“Her…… The efficiency is incredible. Twice ordinary mana…… no, perhaps three times.”
The circulating dark-attribute mana formed a single formula that existed in his memory, and that was the foundational formula of Kreutzwald-style necromancy.
The basic magic formula was complete.
“Then now……”
It was time to take out the soul sleeping inside the lantern.
「Soul Harvester’s Lantern—‘Soul Storage’ has been used.」
「Please select the soul to extract.」
The green light deepened a little more and grew darker.
What gradually slipped out through that green was a soul.
Airaitz’s soul, which had been asleep for quite a long time since the battle in Baal Forest.
Following the necromantic formula, he guided it together with the dark mana.
Toward the soulless body of the elf.
Guiding it was not difficult.
Because the moment Airaitz’s soul left the lantern and woke from its sleep, it submitted.
Handling a soul with its own will was originally extremely troublesome, yet Airaitz’s soul simply complied and followed Hio’s guidance, even though it could not have known what it was heading toward or for what reason.
However, that did not mean the overall necromancy was easy.
It was a longer task than expected, and one that required patience.
Not only was this his first time handling dark mana, but guiding a soul while maintaining the formula as it was proved more difficult than he had thought.
But in the end—
“……It’s done.”
It was only a matter of time.
At last, Airaitz’s soul had been overlaid onto the body of the noblest elf.
“Now we need only wait, then.”
What remained was waiting.
The dark mana that had entered together with Airaitz’s soul, as if assisting it, spread through the elf’s body and began to run rampant.
He could clearly feel it stretching out through the arms, through the legs.
At the same time, the body twitched.
It slowly raised itself.
The eyes that opened slightly were not dyed black as before, and she looked around at her own moving body in wonder.
“……Did it succeed?”
“I think so.”
Airaitz’s soul had settled into the body of the noblest elf.
Before long, those eyes turned toward Hio and, without fail, curved into a pretty arc.
“Hio Pavlenko.”
At the same time, a scarlet light spread out.
And the first words of Airaitz, who had thus gained a body again, were extremely like her.
“I love you.”
As she rose, she staggered for a moment, then burrowed straight into Hio’s arms.
So now there was no choice but to be certain.
“It succeeded.”
“Definitely.”
Who could look at her and not see Airaitz?
Her appearance was that of the elf’s graceful face, but her gestures, actions, and way of speaking were all Airaitz.
“Airaitz.”
“I love you!”
“Does your body feel uncomfortable, or is there any sense that it won’t move the way you want?”
“I love you!”
“We need to check whether there are any side effects, so……”
“I love you!”
“……Did something go wrong with your head?”
Seeing her shake her head while hugging him tightly, it seemed she understood his words……
Maybe she was just happy to be able to speak again after so long.
“Is this really…… real? It’s not a dream, right?”
Airaitz lifted her head and touched Hio’s cheek, feeling along his face.
There were even faint tears in her eyes.
“Yeah. It’s not a dream.”
“……Thank goodness.”
She lowered her head again, burrowing into his embrace as she murmured.
“I kept dreaming. Dreams of the moment I died. It hurt a lot more than I thought, but sometimes, when I heard a certain voice, strangely, it didn’t hurt. And whenever that happened, I always had a different dream. Dreams from when I was young, or dreams from when I was with you, Hio.”
He silently held Airaitz in his arms and listened to what was nearly a monologue.
As he did, a strange feeling came over him.
In truth, the time he had spent with Airaitz had not been all that long.
And yet, how had his existence become engraved in her so deeply?
“When I look back and think carefully about it, my childhood memories weren’t all bad either. Is it because time has passed?”
So Hio decided to accept Airaitz’s words, which were almost like grumbling, for at least this small amount of time.
In a way, this was the moment she had died and been reborn.
He could not even begin to guess what that felt like.
“So, you see……”
But because he had become too absorbed in this situation, there was something he was missing yet again.
Suddenly, he heard a voice that sounded as if its owner were speaking through clenched teeth.
“You…… haven’t forgotten me, have you?”
When he turned his head toward that voice, he saw Silvert, still standing stiffly with his body hardened like stone, looking this way.
Hio was about to answer him.
“Ah, right……”
But there was something faster than him.
Still in Hio’s arms, Airaitz turned only her head to look at Silvert.
Her expression, unlike when she looked at Hio, had sunk into complete coldness.
And at the words she spat out—
“What’s with that ugly thing?”
A vein finally bulged on Silvert’s forehead.