The Death Mage Who Doesn't Want a Fourth Time Chapter 98 — The one who guides and the ones who go on

“Now then, we will begin the project to turn the marshlands into a Capricorn farm,” Vandalieu declared enthusiastically, but there was actually not a lot to do. There were still only a few dozen Capricorns that had transford from goats, so the only thing they could do was make preparations for a large-scale farm in the future.

First, he inford the two thousand Lizardn with Shashuja as the diator. But since he was only a Rank 5 Lizardman Geronimo, it seed that leading two thousand mbers of his own race was harsh on him.

That was why Vandalieu had left the Zombie of the forr Scaled King, who had now been renad Leo, as well as the Dragons that had been his subordinates, under Shashuja’s command. A Zombie of the forr ruler would be serving him. It didn’t have any practical abilities, but this would likely discourage the Lizardn from disobeying.

“Co to think of it, it was my first ti creating a Zombie out of a Dragon,” said Vandalieu.

Knochen, the combination of countless bones, groaned unhappily.

“Knochen, please restrain yourself this ti.”

It seed that Knochen had wanted Leo’s bones, but Vandalieu had given it Earth Dragon bones to keep him restrained.

Vandalieu still felt unsure about the Lizardn, so he had decided to call Bone Man, who had remained in Talosheim during the battle of the expedition, to co out and be stationed here for a while along with the Black Bull Knights’ Order who were mounted on Demon Horses.

“Jyuuh, please leave it to , my lord,” said Bone Man.

Demon Horses had the Rough Road Travel skill, so they could run across the muddy marshlands the sa as any flat ground. And unlike the horses that they had once been, they could eat anything, so they were easy to maintain.

Of course, Bone Man was planning to replace his Demon Horse mount to Leo once things had settled down in the marshlands. Leo had so difficulties with mobility compared to Demon Horses, but he was Bone Man’s desired Dragon Zombie.

“I’m counting on you,” said Vandalieu. “Well, while you’re here, I’m planning to be going back and forth from Talosheim.”

“After all, you are talented, my lord,” said Bone Man.

There were many things that only Vandalieu could do, and many other things that others could do but Vandalieu could do much quicker and in a much simpler way.

“Well, this work isn’t that impressive though,” said Vandalieu, using Golem Transmutation to build barns with the trees produced with Plant Binding Technique as lumber.

And then he taught the Lizardn how dairy farming worked with ten of the Capricorns that he had brought from Talosheim.

Of course, the Lizardn, who had been living a lifestyle of hunting and gathering, were inexperienced with dairy farming. However, there was a race known as Lizardman Riders who tad and mounted monsters resembling crocodiles, so they imdiately understood Vandalieu’s orders to raise the Capricorns.

At first, they had been confused that they would be doing so for milk rather than for combat, however. As their appearances indicated, Lizardn were oviparous, so they were unfamiliar with milk.

But that didn’t an that they couldn’t drink it. They were carnivorous, but milk provided animal protein, so Vandalieu had told them to try a cup. While they had been bewildered at first, after a mouthful of milk, they understood that this task was for the purpose of securing a stable food source.

Capricorns were a little more intelligent than normal goats and they were also sturdy and resistant to disease. They ate any algae and aquatic plants growing in the marshlands without specific preferences, so they were popular with the Lizardn as well for their use in dealing with weeds.

They then reorganized the Lizardn groups that had beco smaller as a part of the battle and made maps. It was possible that small groups of less than twenty Lizardn wouldn’t even be able to live stable lives, let alone manage territories, and it would be extrely inconvenient for Vandalieu to not know how large each village of Lizardn were.

The organization of the Lizardn groups went very smoothly because of their fear of Vandalieu. If they had been humans, various problems could have occurred, but it seed that the Lizardn had no attachnt for their territory.

As for the map, Sam had postponed his flying training and taken Chezare and the others around the marshlands to quickly create a map that gave a rough idea of the area’s layout.

As a result of this work that took multiple days, Vandalieu gained an idea of how vast the marshlands were.

“This place is larger than the Hartner Duchy, isn’t it?” said Vandalieu.

There wasn’t any technology for precise asurents, but the map could be used to estimate how long it would take soone to walk sowhere.

When Vandalieu had been getting the small and dium-sized groups to join him, he had gained a rough idea of the size of the area ruled by the Scaled King. From there, they had determined the size of the marshlands, but… it turned out that the marshlands were even larger than that.

However, it seed that there weren’t any influential monsters other than the Lizardn. The Noble Orc Empire was apparently further south of the marshlands, but the marshlands were not attractive lands for the heavy Orcs, so they hadn’t co to the marshlands before.

Vandalieu wondered how the Noble Orc Bugogan had managed to cross the marshlands, but… the truth was that he never did.

Bugogan had not gone north from the empire he was exiled from; he imdiately challenged the mountain range to the west. After struggling and finding a path that even he could cross, he had ended up coming out near the Devil’s Nest near Balcheburg.

Everyone was currently busy organizing everything in the marshlands, so Vandalieu decided to leave the Orc at buffet in the Noble Orc empire for later. The empire wouldn’t escape anywhere.

Leaving that aside.

“That ans that His Majesty is already a being that surpasses the dukes of the Orbau Kingdom,” said Chezare.

“No, Chezare-dono, I believe that is going a little too far. Our population is too small. Even if we take the Lizardn into account, there is too much land,” said Sam.

The population of even a remote city of the Hartner Duchy like Niarki had a population of around ten thousand. Even if the Lizardn were included, Talosheim’s population was only six thousand.

Vandalieu agreed with Sam; it couldn’t be said that he had surpassed the dukes.

But the marshlands were a treasury of resources. Plants that looked exactly like lotus roots grew natively and the marshes had fishes resembling catfish, loaches and eels living in them.

Also, the Lizardn had told Vandalieu about a place where hot mud ca out of the ground. It was possible that this would be Vandalieu’s first encounter with a hot spring in Lambda.

And there were two Dungeons, so it was possible that he could acquire new materials and food ingredients.

“Lizardn apparently take five years to reach adulthood, so let’s take it slow to make the marshlands thrive,” said Vandalieu. “For now, I suppose we should go back to Talosheim.”

Doing all of the tasks ahead would have to wait until after a Job-change.

Ten days had passed since the Scaled King’s defeat. Vandalieu had been worried that Luvesfol, the Raging Evil Dragon God, would make a move after his servant who had received his divine protection had been defeated and his Familiar Spirit wounded, but there were no signs of that happening, so there would probably be no problem with leaving the marshlands.

Coming to this decision, Vandalieu climbed aboard Sam’s carriage and returned to Talosheim for now, having completed the preliminary preparations for the farm and the creation of a map.

Incidentally, Luvesfol, the Raging Evil Dragon God that Vandalieu was wary of in case he was plotting revenge, was writhing in agony as he desperately fled the southern region of the continent.

“I can’t stay and gather servants in a place where a monster like that exists! I’m going back to the Dark Continent!”

The Lizardn who had been his subordinates hadn’t known this, but the Scaled King who had the divine protection of the Raging Evil Dragon God had actually acquired a superior version of Familiar Spirit Descent, the Spirit Clone Descent skill, allowing him to temporarily have a Spirit Clone of the god he worshipped descend upon him.

Familiar Spirit Descent couldn’t even compare to Spirit Clone Descent’s effects, but… during the descent, the Spirit Clone had been shot and killed by an absurd attack, inflicting quite a deep wound in Luvesfol.

It wasn’t fatal, but enough to make Luvesfol feel a great fear rather than a desire for revenge. He fled to his original base that was the Dark Continent, where all of the land and surrounding seas had beco Devil’s Nests, feeling no regret for the loss of several thousand of his believers.

Vandalieu, who had returned to Talosheim, was in the Job-changing room on the second floor of the trading post where explorers gathered to exchange goods.

With this, he would join the ranks of the champions… but he didn’t know how to feel about this. Even so, he touched the crystal ball with excitent.

『Jobs that can be selected:【Archenemy】【Zombie Maker】【Corpse Demon Commander】 【Disease Demon】【Spirit Warrior】【Whip Tongue Calamity】【Vengeful Berserker】【Dead Spirit Mage】【Dark Healer】【Labyrinth Creator】【Demon King User】【Demon Guider】【Magic Cannoneer】【Golem Creator】』

“Oh, there are two new ones.”

There was a new Job that seed specialized for using cannons and another that was probably a superior version of the Golem Transmuter Job. There were no Jobs specialized for using Thread-reeling, but those were probably already existing Jobs like the Thread User Job that Bellmond had.

He was interested in the Golem Creator Job, which would likely improve the Golem Transmutation skill that had brought Talosheim so much prosperity, but the Job he should choose was probably still Demon Guider.

With that, he should be able to acquire skills that would improve his appearance to society. Skills with shiny-sounding nas and powerful effects, even if he didn’t know what they were.

“Select Demon Guider.”

Vandalieu made his choice with his heart full of anticipation.

『You have changed Jobs to Demon Guider!』

『You have acquired the Mana Enlargent skill!』

『The levels of the Death-Attribute Charm, Death-Attribute Magic and Chant Revocation skills have increased!』

『The Death-Attribute Charm skill has transford into the Demon Path Enticent skill and the Strengthen Followers skill has been transford into the Guidance: Demon Path skill!』

『You have acquired the unique skill, Abyss!』

“… I’m sorry?” Vandalieu asked the voice in his head that was announcing these skill nas that were far from shiny-sounding or good for society, but there was no reply.

Na: Vandalieu

Race: Dhampir (Dark Elf)

Age: 8 years old

Title:【Ghoul King】,【Eclipse King】,【Second Coming of the Demon King】,【Guardian of the Cultivation Villages】,【Holy Son of Vida】,【Monstrosity】

Job: Demon Guider

Level: 0

Job history: Death-Attribute Mage, Golem Transmuter, Undead Tar, Soul Breaker, Venom Fist User, Insect User, Tree Caster

Attributes:

Vitality: 856

Mana: 485,761,053 ( 48,576,105)

Strength: 295

Agility: 329

Stamina: 480

Intelligence: 990

Passive skills:

Superhuman Strength: Level 5

Rapid Healing: Level 7

Death-Attribute Magic: Level 8 (LEVEL UP!)

Status Effect Resistance: Level 7

Magic Resistance: Level 4

Dark Vision

Demon Path Enticent: Level 1 (Transford from Death-Attribute Charm!)

Chant Revocation: Level 5 (LEVEL UP!)

Guidance: Demon Path: Level 1 (Transford from Strengthen Followers!)

Automatic Mana Recovery: Level 6

Strengthen Subordinates: Level 6 (LEVEL UP!)

Venom Secretion (Claws, Fangs, Tongue): Level 4

Enhanced Agility: Level 2

Body Expansion (Tongue): Level 4

Strengthened Attack Power while Unard: Small

Enhanced Physical Ability (Hair, Claws, Tongue, Fangs): Level 3

Thread Refining: Level 2

Mana Enlargent: Level 1 (NEW!)

Active skills:

Bloodwork: Level 3

Surpass Limits: Level 6

Golem Transmutation: Level 7

No-Attribute Magic: Level 6 (LEVEL UP!)

Mana Control: Level 6 (LEVEL UP!)

Spirit Form: Level 7

Carpentry: Level 6

Engineering: Level 4

Cooking: Level 5

Alchemy: Level 4

Unard Fighting Technique: Level 5

Soul Break: Level 8 (LEVEL UP!)

Multi-Cast: Level 5

Long-distance Control: Level 7

Surgery: Level 3

Parallel Thought Processing: Level 5

Materialization: Level 4

Coordination: Level 4

High-speed Thought Processing: Level 3

Commanding: Level 4 (LEVEL UP!)

Plant Binding Technique: Level 3

Thread-reeling: Level 4

Throwing: Level 4

Scream: Level 3

Dead Spirit Magic: Level 3

Insect Binding Technique: Level 3

Blacksmithing: Level 1

Artillery Technique: Level 2 (LEVEL UP!)

Unique skills:

God Slayer: Level 6 (LEVEL UP!)

Grotesque Mind: Level 6

ntal Encroachnt: Level 5

Labyrinth Construction: Level 5

Demon King Fusion: Level 2

Abyss: Level 1 (NEW!)

Demon King fragnts:

Blood

Horns

Curses

Experience gained in previous life not carried over

Cannot learn existing jobs

Unable to gain experience independently

“… So I didn’t mishear it.” Vandalieu looked at his status multiple tis before putting his hand on his forehead.

Vandalieu didn’t really care about Mana Enlargent. As its na suggested, it was probably a skill that simply increased Mana. The problem was with the other skills.

Demon Path Enticent, Guidance: Demon Path and Abyss. All of these nas sounded bad from society’s point of view. Rather than being shiny-sounding, they were skills that were wrapped in darkness deeper than the darkness of night.

“But I have an idea of what the effects of the first two are. Demon Path Enticent is probably an upgrade to the original Death-Attribute Charm skill and Guidance: Demon Path is probably an upgrade to the Strengthen Followers skill.”

From Vandalieu’s experience, the effects of skills didn’t change significantly when they transford into others. It sounded dangerous and suspicious to say that he would entice or guide people on a demon path, but there wouldn’t be any changes on the scale of the sun turning into a lump of ice.

But Vandalieu had no idea about the Abyss skill.

“… Abyss, activate,” Vandalieu said to try and test it, but nothing remarkable happened.

It seed that it wasn’t the kind of active skill that could be used as if flipping a switch, but a passive skill that was always exhibiting its effect, but…

“What did Abyss an again?” Vandalieu pondered for a bit, having a vague recollection that the word wasn’t used in any particularly positive way, but he couldn’t rember the exact aning.

He thought that he would investigate it later, but because it was a unique skill, he wasn’t sure if there would be any information on it. There was no ruling out the possibility that Vandalieu was the first in history to acquire this skill, just like his Jobs.

“There’s no use in worrying about this and that. I can’t undo the fact that I’ve acquired it, and if it seems harmless, I should just see how it progresses.”

Vandalieu had acquired a Job that was a requirent of being a champion, so things would be alright. He left the room after telling himself this.

“Holy Son, congratulations on this auspicious event!” said Nuaza.

“Getting a Job of the sa type as a champion is amazing!” said Darcia. “You’re still small, but you were even smaller before, now you’ve beco so fantastic… I’m really happy.”

“We should celebrate today!” said Basdia. “So, no making clones of yourself and working today, Van.”

“That’s right, Van-sama,” Tarea agreed. “You are the center of attention today.”

Vandalieu had been caught by everyone who had been waiting outside and taken to the eting hall where a party had been secretly prepared.

After Bellwood’s death, there had been few who had acquired a Guider Job even among a hundred thousand years of history, and Bellmond had told Vandalieu that all of them had left their nas in history, so this was apparently sothing to be celebrated.

In fact, in other nations, massive events were held if it beca known that there was soone with a Guider Job. Not only would such people beco heroes, but they were likely to even join the lower ranks of the gods, so the appearance of these people was to be celebrated.

If that person was the nation’s leader, everyone would be wildly excited.

The people of Talosheim celebrated Vandalieu’s Job-change to Demon Guider in a much more modest way.

The person being celebrated didn’t notice that, however.

“Alright, now for the sweets -” Vandalieu began.

“They would be delicious, but you don’t have to make them, Your Majesty.”

“Well then, soup -”

“We told you, King, you’re not allowed to multiply!”

“Well then, just a quick, simple dish - obuh.”

Rapié?age groaned as she grabbed Vandalieu’s spirit form that had escaped with Out-of-body Experience and forced it back into his physical body.

“You’re not allowed to move,” said Pauvina as she pinned him down.

Vandalieu completely gave up on resisting.

The drears’ senses and limbs were in a hazy state, but they were aware that there was clearly sothing near them.

That thing was like a person, like a beast, enormous yet small, unsightly yet beautiful. The drears didn’t know what that thing was.

However, they could never reach that thing on their own. When they tried, it walked away at a pace that seed as if it could be caught, but they could not.

They could stay there and watch it go, or distance themselves from it. But before they knew it, that thing had co close to them again.

People having this dream began appearing among Talosheim’s people.

One let that ‘thing’ ride them and flew through the night sky.

One beca a wall to protect that ‘thing.’

One wished for a form that could be of aid to that ‘thing.’

So wished for that ‘thing’ to give them sothing that it could grant them, and were delighted with the change that occurred.

So simply felt at ease by being next to the ‘thing.’ And when they woke, they shed tears with the unfilled emptiness and despair that they felt.

But Vandalieu never had this dream.

In his Divine Realm, Rodcorte was monitoring Vandalieu by looking at the records from the humans and Dwarves that had migrated to Talosheim, but - with signs of sothing being cut, the images stopped.

This didn’t stop at only one person; he beca unable to see the records from more and more people.

“What does this an? Were they turned into Undead? No… could this be?!”

An unpleasant thought ran through Rodcorte’s mind. As if to inform him that this thought was correct, an alarm sounded from his circle of transmigration system.

“The ones living in Talosheim who belong to my system are leaving it and moving to another, most likely Vida’s system!”

The next day, Vandalieu needed to procure Undead to examine his Demon Path Enticent and Guidance: Demon Path, so he was thinking of finding so in the wild or making his own. Suddenly, he heard a familiar laugh and the turning of wheels, so he stuck his head outside the window.

“BOCCHAAAAAAAN! PLEASE OBSEEEERVE!”

Sam’s carriage was running through the air.

His pitch-black horses were running and his wheels were turning, as if there was an invisible floor beneath him.

“I, Sam, have succeeded in running through the sky at last! This is the gift of your power, Bocchan!” Sam exclaid.

“Congratulations, Sam,” said Vandalieu. “You finally did it. But is it really a result of my power?”

Vandalieu knew that Sam had put in a lot of effort into achieving a goal that could even be called reckless. He was happy and proud that this effort had paid off. There wasn’t any problem with the fact that he was ‘running’ instead of ‘flying.’

But wasn’t that Sam’s own ability?

“What are you saying, Bocchan! My Rank increased after you acquired the Guider Job; this is most certainly a result of that!”

Indeed, given the timing, this could be the case.

“And there are others who have gained power as well!” said Sam.

“Eh? Who?” Vandalieu asked.

“I will explain, so please get in,” said Sam.

“Okay.”

Vandalieu used Flight and flew into Sam’s carriage. His spirit-form horse that had beco even more sinister, with a pitch-black mane and eyes as crimson as pools of blood, took Vandalieu outside Talosheim.

However, Vandalieu noticed sothing unusual before they arrived at their destination.

“… There’s a new fort outside,” he said.

At first, he thought that it was probably Knochen. Knochen, who had absorbed and fused with multiple bones, was now as big as a large fort.

However, as they drew closer, Vandalieu realized that there were nurous Skeletons that he had never seen before striding around it.

It would have been strange if he could recognize Skeletons that were made of only bones, but Vandalieu would have definitely rembered creating large Skeletons with the features of Dragons, dinosaurs and Manticores.

And then all of the Skeletons roared in unison as Vandalieu and Sam approached.

Vandalieu nodded, recognizing this voice. “Yes, it’s Knochen, isn’t it?”

It seed that fort made of bones and the Skeletons were all part of Knochen.

“Yes,” said Sam. “It seems that Skeletons erged separate from Knochen’s own body after its Rank increased, and it is able to control them. It is happy that it has the sa ability as you, Bocchan.”

As if agreeing to Sam’s words, the fort of bones itself roared this ti. It seed that the fort was Knochen’s main body while the Skeletons were extra parts of it.

It did indeed resemble the way that Vandalieu could use Out-of-body Experience to make spirit-form clones of himself.

“Both of you have had a Rank-up at the sa ti, so it seems that it isn’t a coincidence,” Vandalieu noted.

One case might have been a coincidence, but two was a pattern. Thinking this, Vandalieu concluded that while Sam and Knochen’s qualities, determination and hard work were the largest factors, Guidance: Demon Path had given them the extra push.

It was the sa as how companions of champions acquired hidden techniques or awakened to new special abilities.

This was an effect that would be better described as a transformation or evolution rather than developnt, but that was only because Vandalieu’s companions were not only people, but Undead as well.

It was unlikely that the Guider Job’s effects were limited to people, after all.

Vandalieu was satisfied with this explanation.

“So what kind of races have you beco?” Vandalieu asked.

“I appear to be a Rank 6 Nightmare Carriage,” said Sam. “Knochen is apparently a Rank 9 Bone Fort.”

It seed that they had beco a carriage of nightmares and a fort of bones. Sam was a rare type of Undead to begin with, so it couldn’t be said whether there would be any details recorded of his race, but it was possible that there would be sothing written about Knochen. It had already been a monster that would be labeled as a calamity when it was still a Union of Bones, after all.

Vandalieu decided to investigate this later.

“We have to celebrate, don’t we?”

Celebrations ca first.

But as Vandalieu joined in the circle of Knochen’s Skeletons in a bonodori dance, Cetery Bees flew in and took him away.

Na: Knochen

Rank: 9

Race: Bone Fort

Level: 0

Passive skills:

Dark Vision

Superhuman Strength: Level 10 (LEVEL UP!)

Spirit Form: Level 6 (LEVEL UP!)

Bone Form Manipulation: Level 7 (LEVEL UP!)

Physical Resistance: Level 6 (LEVEL UP!)

Absorption Healing (Bone): Level 7 (LEVEL UP!)

Fortress Form: Level 1 (NEW!)

Fission: Level 1 (NEW!)

Active skills:

Silent Steps: Level 2

Breath (Poison): Level 6 (LEVEL UP!)

High-speed Flight: Level 5 (LEVEL UP!)

Long-distance Control: Level 8 (LEVEL UP!)

Projectile Fire: Level 6 (LEVEL UP!)

Na: Sam

Rank: 6

Race: Nightmare Carriage

Level: 0

Passive skills:

Spirit Form: Level 6 (LEVEL UP!)

Superhuman Strength: Level 5 (LEVEL UP!)

Rough Road Travel: Level 5 (LEVEL UP!)

Impact Resistance: Level 7 (LEVEL UP!)

Precise Driving: Level 5 (LEVEL UP!)

Comfort Maintenance: Level 5 (LEVEL UP!)

Murder Healing: Level 1

Space Expansion: Level 4 (LEVEL UP!)

Air-running: Level 2 (NEW!)

Active skills:

Silent Steps: Level 1

High-Speed Travel: Level 4 (LEVEL UP!)

Charge: Level 6 (LEVEL UP!)

Size Alteration: Level 3 (NEW!)

Spear Technique: Level 2 (NEW!)

Fear Aura: Level 1 (NEW!)

Monster explanation:

【Bone Fort】

A monster whose appearances in history can be counted on one’s fingers, a race that is designated to be a calamity.

Its enormous, fort-sized body is completely made of the bones that it has absorbed, and those bones can form Skeletons that can act independently.

The Skeletons are not particularly powerful; they are slightly stronger than Rank 2 Skeletons. However, their numbers are a threat.

According to records, there has been a Bone Fort that manipulated ten thousand Skeletons simultaneously.

The fearso thing about this monster is that the fort, its main body, can move.

It is a moving fortress with countless soldiers that need no food or rest. It is truly a nightmarish being for humanity.

Knochen is even more terrifying than normal Bone Forts.

As it possesses the High-speed Flight skill, it can fly faster than a bird. Of course, its Skeletons can also fly through the air, and each of them have poisonous breaths. In addition, they are all under the effects of Guidance: Demon Path and Strengthen Subordinates.

Those who think that these are re Skeletons will likely be overwheld by the Skeletons’ poisonous breaths, and once they are immobilized, they will et the cruel fates of having the bones torn from their bodies while they are still alive.

Monster explanation:

【Nightmare Carriage】

A monster that Sam of Talosheim has beco, the first in Lambda.

He runs freely through the air and his entire body emanates an aura that strikes fear into all nearby living creatures.

Skill explanation:

【Mana Enlargent】

A skill that increases the total Mana pool by 10% for each level in the skill. It is a simple skill, yet its effect is enormous.

Many desire the skill, but it is said that the only ones who can acquire it are the companions of champions and the champions themselves.