Chapter 161: The King Of The Undead (2)
The Lich walked onto the training ground, surveying his surroundings.
Many onlookers had gathered, their interest piqued by the duel unfolding before them.
Youve come this far, so this is the end for you.
He had no intention of showing mercy. Challenging him was a mistake, especially for someone from the academy who lacked true strength.
Yet, the Lichs face remained utterly calm.
To him, it seemed like a plea for death.
Clad in the robe of the Magic Academy, he declared flamboyantly.
You dare to belittle me; your crime is not insignificant. I shall correct your manners here.
His speech sounded more like that of a lich than the Lich himself.
However, his actual abilities were laughable.
The Lich offered him a sly grin.
Is it a crime to belittle someone who is deserving of it?
Your mouth is the only thing about you thats alive.
Youve chosen the wrong opponent. A different life awaits you as punishment for your insolence.
Hehehe. The same to you!
Mana swirled around the young mans staff.
He stood firm, chanting the spell.
Entangle!
Did he think to bind the Lichs movements? That was hardly amusing.
Entangle the Lich himself?
With a slight flick of his finger,
Without even a proper chant, the tree roots started to rot and fall away.
They disintegrated faster than they could grow, rendering the Entangle spell ineffective against him.
But it seemed the young mans magic wasnt finished.
Dig!
With the incantation, a sizable hole appeared beneath the Lichs feet.
Judging by the holes dimensions, the casters magical power was significant for his level.
As the Lich descended into the hole, a smile played across his lips.
Grease!
The young man ensured the holes walls were slick, thwarting any escape attempt, and then he called out another spell.
Fire!
At the command, the spectators gasped in alarm.
Hold on! Are you trying to kill him?!
This is too extreme, even for a duel!
Such a spell could easily be lethal!
Especially for someone trapped in a flaming pit!
At their reprimands, the young man shook his head.
The duel is a matter between the parties involved! Dont interfere and get lost!
His sharp words naturally furrowed brows.
Although it was a duel, it was merely a light exchange between academy students.
But the idea of taking a life? He seemed insane.
Even so
There had been cases of lives lost in actual duels, but witnessing it firsthand was unexpected.
Nevertheless, their perceptions had to change.
The Lich easily stepped out of the hole, moving his feet with agility.
The young man was startled.
By estimation, the depth of the hole exceeded three meters. Furthermore, it was essentially a pit of fire due to the flame magic.
To escape that with just a few rolls, even for a Swordsmanship Academy student, would be quite a challenge.
The Lich activated the mana within his body and rapidly closed in on the young man.
In a moment, he seized the young mans head and glared fiercely with icy eyes.
For a brief moment, his eyes shimmered with intense magical power.
A cruel smile, so characteristic of the Lich, played at his lips.
Holding the young mans head firmly, the Lich whispered a spell into his ear.
Remember this. From now on, you are an orc. Build a tribe and live solely for breeding. This will be your life and joy from this moment forward.
Under the Lichs words, the young mans eyes grew clouded and distant.
It was an unmistakable sign that the spell had taken full effect.
Snort!
The young man snorted like an orc, turning his gaze toward the surrounding women.
In his mind, the only thoughts were of building a tribe and breeding.
Under the influence of the hypnotic spell, he began to attack the women indiscriminately.
Screams! Entangle!
Whats happening, you pervert!
Many of those present were female students from the Magic Academy.
He was swiftly restrained by spells.
Despite being subdued by the Lich, the young mans struggles persisted.
The students, witnessing this, concluded that Lich must have done something during the duel, but there was no way to know exactly what.
Who would have thought that a student from the Medical Academy could use high-circle mental magic?
As Lich observed the young mans pitiful state, he smiled as though he found it amusing.
Ha ha ha. Now, you finally look like you fit the part.
His snort and bloodshot eyes, which scanned the women, indeed made him resemble an orc.
A friend of the young man seized Lichs collar tightly.
What have you done! Turn him back to normal right now!
Lichs eyes grew cold at this bold gesture.
Let go. Lowly race.
The overpowering mana directed at him forced the friend to release Lichs collar and step back.
It would be more accurate to say he had no choice but to step back.
His bodys mana screamed at him to retreat.
As their duel appeared to be concluding, a group approached Lich.
They, too, were dressed in white coats, just like Lich.
They greeted him with cheerfulness and began a conversation.
Youre a new face at our academy, a new student who just joined?
Such a handsome newcomer is always welcome. Ho ho ho.
Lich considered their words for a moment.
Pretending to be a new student here would be convenient in many ways. After all, this white coat appears to be their uniform, and denying it would be more suspicious.
He made his decision quickly and answered without much hesitation.
I am a new student.
Ha ha ha. I thought as much. Were about to go for a drink, would you care to join us? As a thank you for giving those haughty magic students a taste of their own medicine, Ill buy you a drink.
That was quite satisfying to watch, wasnt it? Such a scene.
Lich regarded them for a moment, pondering their offer.
One of them is a 2nd circle magician, and the rest are ordinary humans. Theres nothing much to gain from staying here, so it might not be a bad idea to follow them.
Fine. Lead the way.
His tone was arrogant, but no one seemed to mind much.
Lich, who had become a hero among the Medical Academy students, went off to drink with the humans.
How long had it been since Lich entered a tavern?
As Lich stepped into the tavern with a fresh feeling, many eyes turned toward him.
And no wonder, given his extraordinary appearance.
Murmurs filled the air around him.
Is that an elf?
Idiot, look at the ears. Hes human.
But with such looks, its easy to mistake
Judging by the white coat, he must be from the Medical Academy.
Ignoring the surrounding noise, the largest man in the group promptly found a seat, clearly a regular with his confident stride.
Soon after they sat down, a female server appeared to take their order.
Youre back again? Youve been coming here often lately
Ha ha ha. Enough with the chit-chat, give us four of what we usually have.
Alright.
The server seemed familiar with them, confirming Lichs suspicions.
The two women in the group, excluding the man, chatted among themselves.
Phew. Our class had another dissection today, but I just cant get used to it.
You too? I also find it hard, especially memorizing all the terms.
Lichs interest was piqued by their conversation.
Dissection was his area of expertise.
After all, standing before them was the No-Life King, who had reached the pinnacle by studying black magic. Who else could discuss dissection?
From humans to monsters, and even insects, there was no creature Lich hadnt dissected.
He joined their conversation.
What are you talking about? Tell me more.
His tone remained condescending, but now it was part of his amusement.
The women chuckled and replied.
You know Professor Ray? Since you just arrived, you might not know about the practices, but one of them is pig dissection.
Pig dissection? Are you learning black magic or something?
His serious expression made the redhead burst into laughter.
What? Ho ho ho! No, its more like we dissect to understand medicine.
Medicine? What does that mean?
Lich asked, and the woman pondered, her finger on her lips.
Um its like treating people without using magic, I guess?
Lich frowned at her answer.
Treating people without magic? Perhaps such a thing existed in the ancient era of magic
Similar concepts had existed during that era of extensive research.
However, the time and efficiency of those treatments couldnt compare to magic, and they soon disappeared.
Frankly, why would anyone opt for time-consuming, uncertain treatments when magic could heal instantly?
But Lichs understanding was only partially correct.
Firstly, the medicine of that time was underdeveloped.
Thus, treatments were ineffective and inferior to magic, often not based on accurate diagnoses.
Had Ray been the one treating in that era, proper treatment might have been possible.
Since Lich couldnt grasp the true essence of medicine, their actions seemed futile to him.
Investing so much in something useless to establish an academy. Id like to know what kind of madman thought of this.
His perspective might have changed if he had known that the one who established it was the mage who killed him, but without that knowledge, he couldnt help but misunderstand.
As they talked and laughed, their drinks arrived.
The man gulped his down.
Ah! This moment is what Ive been waiting for all day!
Ho ho ho. Over the top as always.
But its true the lectures are tough. And the upperclassmen have been quite aggressive lately.
I wish the professor would do something Sigh.
They sighed as the drinks slid down their throats.
It wasnt the professors fault, but the lack of action from the teaching staff was slightly frustrating.
The man changed the subject.
But this guy here gave us a satisfying revenge! Thats good enough, right? Ha ha ha.
Yeah, but still.
They wanted to say more but refrained, not wanting to appear as if they were merely there to gossip about the professor.
Lich observed them and pondered.
Their reputation isnt good. Could it be because of what happened earlier?
Clearly, the Medical Academy, to which they referred, and the Magic Academy operated on different levels.
To him, they were all part of the same inferior race, and he couldnt fathom why they exerted so much effort to assert their superiority.
Nevertheless, he had the sense that if things continued along this path, a major incident between them would soon unfold.
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