The Necromancer Who Was Despised

Because of that, this fortress was particularly weak compared to other fortresses.

The most resources were consumed on this theme.

Each fortress required a ‘top’ to correspond to it, after all.

The ‘tops’ Yeriya created using the remnants of the soul. They were the center of communication.

“It’s a shame it’s 1:1 correspondence, though.”

Even preparing more high-quality undead required a massive amount of resources.

“The lake will be controlled by him.”

So, the lake would be located not far from here.

When necessary, the autonomous black water stored in the lake would be used as needed.

As the grand duke had immense authority, he made sure to set up all sorts of restrictions so I couldn’t refuse him.

By the way, if the water ran out, I’d have to refill it myself.

“Huuh.”

Just thinking about refilling it made me feel exhausted.

It wouldn’t be possible in a day or two.

At the very least, I had to focus on filling the lake for a month.

This month had already been significantly reduced.

Since I became a demon king and the gap between the demon world and the human world widened, and Tinus separately used the power of the fallen sacred artifact, the influence was considerable.

And in fact, it wasn’t possible to fill the lake completely even if I focused for a month.

“It’s just like putting out a fire urgently.”

If it was according to the planned scale, I’d have to focus for three months.

That’s difficult at this point in time.

If I filled it to the brim, even if battles were frequent, I’d be able to hold out for over a year.

Later, if it reached a certain scale, I’d need to hunt some of the autonomous undead to supplement it, so I’d be able to hold out even longer, but for now, I’d focus on increasing the scale, and the lake’s water would be used extensively.

Therefore, research for increasing efficiency was ongoing even now.

“I’ll fill it up for about a month and then go to the senior council of the alliance.”

As for the kingdom, I’d just send people separately. The scale… they’d handle it themselves.

“I was thinking of going to the front lines, but…”

The scale had become too large.

The kingdom would probably say something, but I’d try to fill the lake to the maximum and move.

Considering the value of this place, it was a natural action.

“Obtaining a passage permit is easy, anyway.”

Using the black bones, it wasn’t difficult with a simple method.

In the end, because of the lake, I’d have to stay here for a while even after the trade route was completed.

While the trade route was being completed, I mobilized the undead to create a large pit.

I utilized the basic gray-colored structure of the corpse pit, and since it wasn’t a large-scale magic, it wasn’t difficult.

Tinus and Yeriya, the two dark elf seniors, would help with opening the waterway.

Mutru would supervise the site, but they’d only help to a certain extent.

While I was filling the lake, Kyra and Artina were staying nearby, training.

About a month had passed when I couldn’t join the interspecies union.

Southern Great Forest, the dark magician’s riot.

It was an urgent news that came to me.

◈ Black Star

The dark magician’s riot.

I was taken aback by their sudden news.

“Southern Great Forest… is it the Black Star?”

“Maybe.”

Tsk.

Tinus, who brought the news, clicked his tongue.

“At that time, it seems you caught their attention. Even so, their movement is too rapid.”

Tinus shook his head, suspecting their intentions.

“Do they want me to go to the south?”

“It seems so. The current situation is that the kingdom can’t spare any troops since the negotiations with the 2nd Kingdom haven’t been concluded. That’s why they requested our support in the south.”

“Are we supposed to deal with the Black Star on our own?”

“It seems they want us to work together with the Dark Elves sent by the interspecies union. They’ve already made the request.”

There was no reason for them to refuse since they had already sent people.

“Damn it, this is ridiculous.”

In reality, it was almost an order. It wasn’t their usual way of handling things, so it was an urgent situation.

“But isn’t it insufficient? If they’re asking for our help to this extent, doesn’t that mean the scale is enormous?”

“You’re right, the scale isn’t ordinary.”

“What are we supposed to do about it?”

“It doesn’t seem like we’re supposed to handle it on our own. They’re saying we should get support from the Hectio Kingdom.”

Hectio.

A country facing the Great Forest, known as the hometown of the demon hunters.

“They must have lost a lot of power, right?”

“Most of them are still there, apparently.”

“What?”

“From the start, they received a lot of consideration, so most of their main forces are still intact. Even those who went to the battlefield have mostly returned.”

The interspecies union had formed an alliance with the empire and was at odds with them. In this situation, they received consideration and had a significant portion of their main forces remaining in the kingdom. Moreover, they even sent back those who had gone to war. It was an unbelievable story.

“It’s likely they were wary of the Great Forest. In the end, it was a good thing.”

“…After all, the demon hunters’ place to shine isn’t on the battlefield, but in places like the Great Forest.”

If we were to go to war, it would be helpful, but the limitations were clear.

In terms of military power, our side was superior, and the 2nd Kingdom suggested negotiations over combat, so it seemed like they chose to send them back.

As Tinus said, it was a good outcome in the end.

“…There’s no choice.”

“It’s an unavoidable situation, but I think this might be for the better.”

“After all, we’re in the middle of a war with the empire, and if we suddenly get attacked from behind, it would be dangerous.”

“It’s not bad to clean up those black star bastards beforehand. Anyway, I was going to take care of them later, and they’ve already abandoned their base and come out. I don’t think I’m doing anything wrong.”

If you think about it, Tinos’ words aren’t entirely wrong.

The only question is whether the interspecies union can maintain its neutral zone in this situation.

“…Oh. If this happens, the effort we put into paving the pioneering road will be for nothing.”

I heard that the Black Mages’ disturbance is on a fairly large scale.

So, even if I help, I wonder if I can completely eliminate them.

As time passes, the 2nd Kingdom will gain the upper hand in negotiations, and the 6th Kingdom Union will have no choice but to support the interspecies union and dispatch troops to the south.

“It’s not entirely meaningless. At least, we’ll get some materials.”

“That’s not enough to satisfy me, though.”

The water we’ve stored up now is about one-third of the total.

We can hold out for about four months or so….

“I think we should focus on holding out rather than increasing our scale for now.”

We need to treat the undead we’ve been using here as consumables.

“…Should we take the Orcs with us?”

They would know the situation in the southern forest relatively well.

The problem is that if we do, it might provoke the Red Ogres….

“There’s no need to make more enemies unnecessarily.”

It would be better to take my own troops and leave the barren land to the Orcs.

“It’s right to take everyone who can be taken.”

Except for Ori, I intended to take everyone.

She’s like a last stronghold.

The barren land is virtually conquered, but if an unexpected situation arises, the Orcs need a place to escape to.

That place would be the area around Ori’s Soul Tower.

I quickly gathered my party.

I explained the situation quickly and told Mutr to return to Ori.

The waterway itself is largely destroyed, but it’s still lacking.

However, there was no choice. There’s no one to definitely protect it.

I couldn’t leave Mutr in this dangerous place with most of my troops gone.

Ori saw us off with a worried expression, and the Orcs wanted to follow, but I shook my head, saying it was impossible.

After quickly preparing, I rushed to find Prina, who already knew the news.

I told her I would accept the royal family’s request.

She nodded in response to my words.

“Those who move with you, including Director Do In-ha, will go as the reinforcement troops under the name of the Linate Territory.”

Use this identity to the fullest if necessary.

“Please come back safely.”

I responded to her words with a brief nod.

As we left, Tia, who had given us time, said, “Take that with you.”

What she handed over to us was a large amount of food.

In a war situation, there’s nothing more important than food.

“It wasn’t easy to obtain.”

“Ah, we’ve harvested quite a lot this time.”

“What?”

“We’ve had our first harvest while pioneering the trade route.”

It’s been a few months since we took over this place.

After cultivating the land, our first crop yielded an enormous output.

“It’s at a level where just scattering seeds would make them grow well…”

Moreover, some of it is consumed internally, and a significant amount is supported or sold externally, they say.

It’s no wonder Rineta tried to take over this place in the past.

“…I’ll use it gratefully.”

I repeated, saying that if Phrena just came back safely, that would be enough.

I felt a sense of relief when I put the food inside the dimensional fragment.

‘I was worried about preparing separately with the Dark Elves, but it turned out well.’

Thanks to that, we saved time.

After quickly finishing our preparations, we left the main estate of Rineta’s territory, where one person was waiting for us.

“Let’s go together.”

It was a very familiar face.

“Lord Griean? What about the royal information department?”

“This is also part of my mission.”

He said, pulling out a seal with a sly smile.

On it was an inscription symbolizing the Sperto Kingdom.

“I was ordered to assist Lord Doynha… There’s a situation where the Hectio Kingdom isn’t cooperating.”

He’s going to resolve some trivial matters.

With the royal seal, he became a sort of proxy, holding authority beyond that of an ordinary diplomat.

I realized once again how much Griean had risen in power.

“It’s all thanks to Lord Doynha…”

…That’s indeed true.

It seemed like he had achieved success based on his connection with me.

‘If I had such authority, it would be helpful.’

It would be beneficial. Then, there was no need to refuse.

“Let’s move quickly, is that okay with you?”

“My physical condition is decent… It’s just that I’m not good at keeping up with conversations.”

It wasn’t hard to lend him a Phantom Steed.

One of the undead, who had lost its mount inside the dimensional fragment, looked sorrowful, but I didn’t care.

Griean adapted to the Phantom Steed faster than expected.

Our party was relatively small.

We didn’t need to bring out the undead or Dark Elves, who had no reason to come out, and left them inside the dimensional fragment.

‘The dimensional fragment will be useful.’

At least, we’ll find out that it’s a subspace that can even hold living beings.

It’s no surprise that I told him I was with the Undead, inquiring about Dark Elf’s whereabouts.

Griyang, who had discovered that the fragments of dimensions were not ordinary subspace, was shocked.

“I’ve heard rumors that there’s a hideout connected to another dimension in the royal palace, so maybe it’s true.”