Chapter 81: Chapter 81: From Ghost Fire to Banshee
"I’m not sure this will work..." Victoria still wasn’t on board, but Aive’s knowledge was certainly broader than hers. If Aive felt it was fine, then she had no objections.
"Hey! Ron, Ron!"
As the group walked into the newly established village that afternoon, a series of calls caught their attention. At the same time, a hazy, glowing figure whizzed past the nearby villagers like a whirlwind and shot straight toward Ron.
The ethereal figure, which gave off a faint blue glow, was wrapped in fluttering strips of tattered cloth. Through her messy, swirling hair, you could still vaguely make out the delicate elven features she had in life.
"Look at me! I’m not just a skull anymore!" She showed no hostility toward Ron and his group, simply floating and circling around them, showing off her new form.
"You’re... You?" Ron stared in amazement at the Ghost appearing in broad daylight. "Can Undead Creatures change their form? Are you a banshee now?"
"Uhh, I guess so?" You hovered about five feet in front of Ron, her expression puzzled. "Honestly, I don’t know. Ever since the master’s Magic unlocked my memories, I’ve been busy processing fragments from my past life. That is, until a few days ago."
"That Canary who defeated the master before came back, and he was with the master’s teacher. They talked for a long time, and right before they left, a brilliant flash of Magic enveloped me."
"Long story short—I’m a banshee now! A banshee who has her memories, can talk, can move around in the daylight, and isn’t bound to the place where she died!"
You’s tone was joyful and exuberant. For a being that had died long ago, nothing could be more exhilarating than to walk the world once more.
"It sounds like this ’Canary’ possesses considerable power and knowledge," Silvia said thoughtfully. "But why isn’t he here, dealing with all the chaos in this land?"
"He can’t. He might be afraid," You interjected. "Aren’t you looking for the reason Green Swamp Town was wiped out? I actually know a little about that."
"I was from Green Swamp Town when I was alive."
"Uh, are we supposed to be saying ’Long live the Hailan Empire’?" Aive asked tentatively, her hand moving to the hilt of her sword.
"There’s no need to be so wary of me. I was only twenty years old when I came to Green Swamp Town," You said with a sad smile. "Now, I’m a ghost myself. What’s the point of mourning an empire that was destroyed so long ago?"
"Not everyone is as philosophical as you are. In fact, you don’t act like a banshee at all." Aive breathed a small sigh of relief and let her hand fall from her sword.
"That’s probably because they actually experienced the glory of the old empire, unlike me. I spent my whole life in this enclave, far from its heart. But what does it matter? That’s their problem. If you want to get rid of them, I won’t plead for my ’compatriots.’ Because I’m a heartless banshee now, ha!"
"Let’s talk about the Delusional Land instead. I’m guessing ’Lord Canary’ let me do the telling for this very reason. Those terrifying beings would be wary of a powerful creature, but who’s going to pay any mind to what a little banshee has to say?"
"Excellent," Ron said with a smiling nod. "I’ve had enough of all these riddles. Tell me what actually happened!"
"To put it simply, we were wiped out because, in our final days, we discovered a powerful force," You said, her expression thoughtful. "This power was hidden underground. It moved quickly and was drawn to the remains of intelligent beings."
"Baron Salan Lane believed this power was the key to saving the empire and ensuring the continuation of the Hailan Empire. So, he devised a plan to use himself as bait. He would build a mausoleum, be entombed with treasures in a state of feigned death, and lure the power in. Then, he would use the Magic Items from the stone slate to capture and tame it."
"But he hadn’t counted on one thing: the Elves who built his mausoleum were subjected to Power Corruption during its construction. By the time the power was drawn into the tomb, the corrupted Elves interfered. The Baron was devoured whole before he could even awaken from his feigned death. After that, the corrupted Elves repaired the structure, turning the false mausoleum into a true tomb, and returned to the surface."
"My fellow kinsmen and I didn’t know what had happened at the time, but soon, people started acting stranger and stranger, one after another. They didn’t see anything abnormal about their own behavior. Instead, they thought *we* were the ones who had been corrupted..."
"To capture us, they somehow acquired forbidden knowledge and opened a Teleportation Gate to the Elemental Plane, letting all sorts of Giant Spirits run rampant through Green Swamp Town."
You’s Spirit Body began to flicker, a sign of her extreme mental instability. "To avoid being captured and corrupted, the other survivors and I just kept running and running. When we were finally cornered, we chose suicide to avoid becoming one of those... those walking dead. But... but I couldn’t accept it—"
"I came here with my parents when I was just a child. They said this place would give us a new life, but I watched them walk straight into an abyss! Baron Salan Lane was a good man, just a little neurotic, and I only learned of his final fate through Communication with the Dead among my own people! And all my kinsfolk... they all came here, united by different dreams that all led to the same goal, only for it to end in a tragedy where they turned on and killed each other!"
"Power? Power! It was all a trap, all lies!"
You let out a piercing, hoarse shriek. Ominous, grayish-black motes of light began to flicker, slowly creeping up her form from below.
Her previous state of freedom seemed to have been an illusion. As her emotions surged, she began to show signs of transforming into a true banshee.
"Shh, shh..." Victoria saw that something was wrong with You. Her voice carried a reassuring power. As she reached out her hand, a halo of tranquil, serene light emerged from her palm and enveloped You. "It’s all over now..."
A Priest’s Divine Magic always contained such wondrous abilities, things that a Mage would find difficult to master.
Soothed by Victoria, You gradually calmed down. She didn’t notice the motes of light below her swiftly fading away, as if they had never been there at all.
"I’m sorry, I lost control of myself," You’s form seemed to project a sigh. "So, now you should understand why the stone slate was inscribed the way it was, right?"
"We touched what lies beneath, discovered that power, and attempted to capture it. The last few of our surviving scholars believed this was the test to determine if we were worthy of becoming ’food.’"
"Honestly, if you ask me, it’s more like fishing. That untouchable power is the bait, and the fisherman reels in any fish that takes the hook and puts it on their dinner table."
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