Chapter 138 - 137: The Chase

Chapter 138: Chapter 137: The Chase

Although he had successfully acquired a minion using [Reanimated Corpse], Hesia still felt the skill wasn’t exactly respectable.

The reason was—

The Undead he had personally created had run away!

Earlier, while talking with Wilson, Hesia hadn’t paid much attention to the newborn Undead.

The skeleton seemed to be following some residual instinct, wandering around aimlessly, so Hesia hadn’t given it a second thought.

And then, the moment he wasn’t looking, it vanished.

At that moment, Hesia was pondering a very serious question: ’Can it be that the Undead I created myself doesn’t listen to my commands?’

The thought had barely formed when Hesia froze.

’Uh... wait a minute...’

’I don’t think... I ever gave it any commands.’

Well, things being what they were, he had no choice but to find it quickly.

He glanced over at Bruce nearby, and the sight gave him an even bigger headache—that silly dog, for some godforsaken reason, had dumped out all the coins from the two Money Bags "gifted" by Dimi and Wilson. It had arranged them neatly on the grass, as if conducting some bizarre, money-worshipping ceremony.

Hesia was about to go scold him, but Bruce was already wagging his tail, looking up expectantly. "Hesia, they’re all arranged! Count the money!"

Well then...

Hesia could only pat his head helplessly, then scrambled to put the money back into the bags.

"Fifteen Silver Scales and sixty-two copper nails in total. Nicely done. But you don’t have to lay them all out next time."

"Now, hurry up and get a scent. See which way that skeleton ran."

Bruce was still basking in the joy of his haul and was startled to realize the skeleton was gone.

He quickly lowered his head and sniffed, locking onto the trail in an instant. "Hesia! This way!"

Hesia put away the last copper nail, praising, "Good boy, Bruce!" Then, his expression changed. "Shit, isn’t that the direction of the town gate?"

...

Bruce tracked ahead with Hesia close behind, man and dog sprinting along the path outside the town.

"Hesia," Bruce asked as they ran, "doesn’t the bone guy listen to you?"

"He should, in theory. But I forgot to give him an order."

"What happens if you don’t give an order?"

Hesia thought for a moment.

"This kind of low-level Undead has no real capacity for thought. It can only act on instinct. I guess... it follows the habits it had in life?"

"So where would it go?"

’Habits from its past life... The skeleton was a member of the Shadowless Team when it was alive.’

"Maybe it’s running toward the Shadowless Team’s hideout?" Hesia guessed. "Or maybe to a part of town it used to frequent?"

In the short time it took for the man and dog to have this discussion, the main gate of Rose Town came into view.

From a distance, they saw several Guards surrounding a skeleton—the runaway!

Although he didn’t know where the skeleton was headed, it had clearly run into trouble.

Several spear-wielding Guards had it trapped. It was likely their first time encountering an Undead at the town gate, as they all seemed at a loss. Their grips on their spears looked more like an attempt to bolster their courage than prepare for an attack.

A young Guard tentatively thrust out his spear, his voice trembling. "S-stay put! Or else!"

The skeleton dodged with a nimble, almost distorted side-step, its bony claws rapping against the spear shaft with a light CLACK.

Seeing this, another Guard jabbed at it from the side. But the skeleton, as if it had eyes in the back of its head, ducked and pivoted on its heel. The two spears scraped past its ribs, crossing paths with a hair’s breadth to spare, not even chipping off a sliver of bone.

Hesia estimated the control range of [Reanimated Corpse] was probably about the same as its Spellcasting range, roughly seventeen or eighteen meters.

’If I get a little closer, I should be able to order it to run toward the Gray Mist Forest.’

However, something unexpected happened! The surrounded skeleton suddenly whipped its head around, its eerie green eye sockets locking onto the approaching Bruce.

The next second, a jaw-dropping scene unfolded before all the onlookers at the town gate—

The skeleton’s jawbone suddenly dropped open to an impossible angle, as if it had received the shock of its life.

Then, it bent its knees sharply, its entire skeleton releasing in an instant like a compressed spring.

In a move that defied all logic, it flipped backward, tracing a bizarre arc through the air. It launched itself a good three or four meters high, easily clearing the circle of spears held by the Guards behind it.

CLACK. Its bones made a crisp sound as it landed, and then it shot off like an arrow loosed from a bow, sprinting into town.

Unburdened by flesh and blood, the lightweight skeleton was astonishingly fast.

Thanks to his small size, Bruce weaved through the crowd, staying in hot pursuit.

In the blink of an eye, skeleton and dog had vanished around a street corner.

Hesia’s heart sank.

’This is bad...’

He suddenly realized something. If low-level Undead retain their living instincts, then the skeleton’s terrified reaction upon seeing Bruce made perfect sense!

After all, the last thing it remembered from life was fleeing from Bruce with its back turned, right before being torched by his flames.

Initially, Hesia had only given chase to prevent the out-of-control skeleton from harming any innocents.

But controlling Undead in the wilderness was one thing; revealing himself as an Undead Mage on a town street, in front of everyone, was another matter entirely!

When he used Undead Magic out in the open, he was at least confident he could control the situation. The Shadowless Team members could barely save themselves, let alone dare to gossip. Even if they reported him, it would be hard to prove anything that happened in the wilderness. Besides, no law specifically forbade the use of Undead Magic out in the wild.

But if he were to be caught red-handed in town, the situation would be entirely different.

He would then face the panic of the entire town, a manhunt by the Guards, and possibly even attract the special attention of the Church of the Saint Sun—that would be the kind of trouble he couldn’t easily escape.

Although Rose Town didn’t explicitly prohibit Undead Magic, Hesia was well aware of the deep-seated fear and loathing people held for Undead Mages.

While everyone’s attention was captivated by the "flying skeleton," he didn’t hesitate for a second, slipping sideways into the bushes by the road.

’I didn’t think I’d have to use the second attached spell so soon.’

’Who should I turn into... I don’t think there’s anyone I particularly dislike...’

An idea flashed through his mind.

’Got it!’

As he channeled Magic Power into his Magic Wand, Hesia’s face and form began to twist and change.

A moment later, a man in fine clothes with a distinctive omega-shaped chin and a Long-handled Warhammer slung across his back appeared outside Rose Town’s North Gate, striding forward with purpose.

He quickly strode past the still-dazed Guards and rushed into town.

...

The town was in an uproar.

Skeletons are the weakest class of Undead Creatures, but the agility of the one Hesia had made clearly defied the expectations of most Adventurers.

More importantly, a skeleton appearing in town was a hell of a thing to see—literally, a living Undead.

A fruit vendor abandoned his cart, grabbing his money box and running for home. A drunkard who had just stumbled out of a tavern sobered up halfway, the flush draining from his face as he mumbled, "Goddess above, I swear I’ll never drink cheap ale again..."

"By Durin’s beard! Did you see what that was?" asked the Dwarf Kerdin, also fresh from the tavern, rubbing his eyes.

"A skeleton..." the other Dwarf, Sorin, let out a drunken hiccup. "I must be drunk. I thought I saw its legs running backward."

"Its legs weren’t running backward. Its skull was facing backward."

"Let’s go! Let’s follow it and see! This is way more interesting than any story a Minstrel sings!"